Since the 2019 bifurcation of the state, children of nomadic pastoralists who migrate out of Jammu and Kashmir to Ladakh (now two separate union territories), are ignored by the schooling system which is caught up in border red tape. A story for Children's Day
In the summer of 2023, as Jammu heated up, pastoralists readied to move up into the higher Himalayas. But unusually cold weather in those grazing grounds held them back. While waiting, many lost livestock to unseasonal, heavy rains enroute
When pastoral families migrate to the upper Himalayas, they take their young children with them. Travelling teachers like Ali Mohammed follow and ensure that the primary schoolers stay up-to-date and in class. A story in time for Teacher's Day, coming up
This pastoralist community makes a number of items using wool from their animals
This is an important festival for Tibetan Buddhists here in Hanle River Valley. In the first celebration after the pandemic, six hamlets come together amidst the beating of drums and blowing of trumpets
Every year the community ascends to the higher Himalayas in Kashmir in search of grazing grounds. Ongoing fencing of pastures by the military and for tourism, along with a continuing lack of access to basic facilities, is putting their way of life under threat
Pregnant women in an isolated village of Jammu and Kashmir’s Bandipore district struggle with erratic power supply and poor public healthcare facilities. Their only hope is an old dai in the village
The rituals of Muharram observed by Shia Muslims go on for days in Tai Suru village of Ladakh’s Kargil district. For the children, especially girls, it is a chance to meet friends and spend long hours together
The floating gardens on the Dal in Kashmir supply tonnes of vegetables to the market on the lake, but with the administration moving people out of the area, farmers and traders fear for their livelihoods
In Kashmir valley, the arrival of summer marks the season of pigeon racing – a sport that is gaining popularity once again
Srinagar city generates 500 tons of garbage every day. In addition to municipal workers, an informal workforce of waste-pickers clears a big chunk of it every day, keeping aside fears of Covid and other hazards
Migrant labourers from Jharkhand and other states, who arrived in Ladakh when the second Covid-19 wave began to subside, have been building roads at altitudes of over 10,000 feet in extremely harsh conditions
For families living on islands in Srinagar's Dal Lake, most of them farmers, labourers and in the tourism trade, a single and usually shut PHC means they must rely on local chemists who double up as 'doctors'
After moving to the remote Rakh-e-Arth resettlement colony in Srinagar, the Akhoon family has faced severe challenges in accessing healthcare for their son, who has cerebral palsy, and in finding wage work
The documentary featured here records voices of Ladakh's pastoral communities. It speaks of how, in harsh conditions, herders try to protect their livestock from wolves, and the changes in this traditional approach
It's been a tough paddy harvest in Central Kashmir. Skilled migrant workers, who charge less than local labourers, were driven out by the lockdowns, and farmers here are thinking of giving up on the crop
For the Dal Lake economy, the Covid-19 lockdown during tourist season came right after last year's Article 370 shutdown, and it has left shikarawalas, houseboat owners and shopkeepers with heavy losses and no work
As many as 254 Indian pilgrims from Ladakh, most of them elderly, have been stranded for over a month in the city of Qom in Iran, sparking tension at home
The kangri, a wicker-covered earthen 'fire-pot' filled with charcoal embers, is in high demand during the severe winters in Kashmir, and the seasonal trade sustains artisans, farmers and labourers
When his drug habit grew, Azlan's parents brought him to the de-addiction centre in Srinagar, where growing numbers of young people are seeking help – while heroin use is spreading 'like an epidemic' in Kashmir
Saffron farmers in Kashmir are facing a bleak season – an early snowfall, the restrictions imposed after Article 370 was scrapped and a shortage of labourers have hit a trade already in a slump for years
Though the government has lifted its August advisory to tourists to leave Kashmir, shikarawalas have seen few customers. The six-month tourism season sustains them all year and many are now facing a crisis
Apple orchard owners and traders in Kashmir are facing a huge loss of income amid the uncertainty that has followed the abrogation of Article 370 on August 5, which was also the start of their marketing season
Nomadic Changpa pastoralists at the high grazing grounds of Ladakh find their yak-related economy in a crisis that is driven by major climatic shifts in their fragile mountainous ecosystems
From Changthangi goats in the Tibetan Plateau to retail stores in Srinagar, the making of the pashmina shawl involves many – pastoralists, wholesalers, spinners, dyers, designers, embroiderers and entrepreneurs
On March 8, International Women’s Day, a PARI photo essay on the remarkable women of three nomadic pastoralist communities – the Changpa of Ladakh, the Brokpa of Arunachal, and the Fakrani Jats in Kachchh
After many deaths among villagers due to an army firing range, as well as ecological damage in an alpine meadow in Budgam, locals fought to ensure the army’s lease was not renewed in 2014. But problems remain
Hunderman, a remote village on the LOC in Kargil, in the crossfire between two hostile nations, has opened its history and heart to the world – its abandoned houses are now a heritage site preserving the past
Abdul Rashid of Srinagar, Kashmir, with seven decades of experience in the delicate art of dyeing, speaks of how his generation of dyers may be the last, and why they still continue to painstakingly tint yarn
Many of the labourers who build the mountainous roads in Ladakh are migrants from Bihar, Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand – they brave the extreme weather and risky work because of few livelihood options back home
This extraordinary market in Kargil, Ladakh – where all but three shops are run by women – has inspirational tales embedded in its origins and success
When he is not farming, Tsering Angchuk of Sneymo village in Ladakh travels with his portable loom to other villages to weave his highly-reputed signature version of a woollen fabric called ‘snamboo’
The nomadic Changpas of Hanle Valley in Ladakh herd pashmina goats, live in high-altitude pasturelands, and even retain old barter systems – but their ways of life are changing. This photo essay features Changpa Karma Rinchen's community
People of the Balti community in Turtuk village, in the high-altitude Nubra Valley near the LoC, are trying to cope with the impact of major shifts in the climate, and changes in their local economy and culture
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PARI - People's Archive of Rural India
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