Seasonal Calendar and Gender Disaggregated Daily Activities of Indigenous Galo Farmers of Eastern Himalayan Region of India

Abstract

Seasonal calendar and daily farming activities are vital in understanding the farming system of a community and identifying the period of intensive agriculture and lean period for better resources management and planning. The objective of the current study was to evaluate seasonal calendar and gender disaggregated daily activities of indigenous Galo farmers of Arunachal Pradesh. Phenomenological approach was used to understand the system as the native farmers perceive it. The result reveals the rice-based farming system of the tribe with seasonal calendar of major crops that is guided by the climate of the location. Also, it was found that farming is a family activity of the community with well defined task for each family member based on gender. Women play a major role in the farming and also have vital responsibility in preservation and conservation of indigenous local crop varieties and seeds for next season. Generally it was seen that the labor burden of tribal women exceed than that of their male counterpart. Though the farmers seem to remain in the field throughout the year, their involvement in agricultural activities is actually very low. Monocropping nature of farming, long duration crop varieties and excessive dependence on natural factor leads to poor production and productivity of crops. The seasonal calendar may help the researchers and policy makers to understand the specific need of farmers and device tailored measures for sustainable development of the farming sector and livelihood improvement of the specific community under study.