Integration of Resources on Agro-forestry Development and Adaptation (IRADA)
Development and Adaptation proposes to establish a High Altitude “Centre for Research on
Sustainable Land Management (CRSLM)`` which would develop practices on Sustainable use of
natural resources, NTFPs, Systematic cultivation of threatened species of IUCN, and other high value
native Medicinal & Aromatic Plants (MAPs), creating enhance livelihood for local farmers.
Core objective of this establishment shall be Increasing Climate Resilience in the higher altitude
villages of Uttrakhand to practice best conservation methods in Environment and Natural Resource
Management (ENRM) and to establish a sustainable development model keeping balance between
environmental protection and socio-economic development of the region.
Improving farmer's income by interventions in Horticulture methodologies
• Diversifying new horticulture, medicinal and aromatic crops
• Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) and Trainings for farmers
• Good Agriculture Practices (GAP) & maximize Organic Farming
• Value Added products for larger markets, B2B & B2C interventions
• Central Facilitation Centre (CFC), which can act as common processing centre for all produces
RASTA - Reinforced Agroforestry for Sustainable development of Tribal Areas
Himalayan State of Uttarakhand is known for its hilly terrain with rich biodiversity. 86% of the state falls
under hill and mountainous terrain. The altitude ranges between 200 to 7800 msl and thus the distinct
variations in agro-climatic zones are observed. This beautiful, but difficult, terrain has for centuries been
home to various indigenous communities, these indigenous tribes of Uttarakhand mainly comprise five
major groups namely Jaunsari, Tharu, Raji, Buksa and Bhotiyas. In terms of population Jaunsari tribe is
the largest tribal group of the state. Every district of Uttarakhand has more or less a moderate
percentage of tribal population. The main concentration of tribal population is in the rural areas, as per
records, around 90 percent of total tribal population resides in rural areas and the remaining percentage
of tribal population lives in urban centers. In the past, their main concentrations were confined to
remote hilly and forested areas. Some hamlets of tribes of Uttarakhand have retained their age old
traditional ways of living. They represent the distinctive culture and traits of a primitive life. Their
traditional norms and socio-cultural practices determine their ethnicity, the bewildering diversity one
witnesses in the habitat, population, ethnicity, socio- cultural norms and practices, modes of livelihoods,
languages and dialects and their interactions both with each other and the rest of the inhabitants in
their neighborhoods
Socio-economic and environmental issues
• Mountainous region with inconsistence climate, dry and arid high altitude regions
• Lack of round the year livelihood for these indigenous communities
• Land degradation due to out-migration and insufficiently of irrigation systems
• Human - Wild conflicts, impacts on local flora and fauna
• Small and fragmented land holdings over hills, large number of women headed households
• Poor market education and linkages
Opportunity areas as solutions
• Integrated approach to develop Agroforestry for the region
• Structured cultivation of high value Medicinal & Aromatic Plants (MAPs)
• Structured collection of NTFPs as per Global-GAP (Good Agriculture Practices) norms
• Common Facility Center (CFC) managed by FPOs (Farmer Producer Organization)
• Product development with value addition at all level to establish both backward and forward linkages with self-sustainable model for these indigenous communities