Vishwambhar Prasad Sati – författare

This book provides a unique and comprehensive assessment of the changes that have been taking place in the Himalayas. It describes in detail all the aspects of change, both natural and cultural, along with their implications, and suggests policy measures to help mitigate them. The book is divided into two major sections – on natural changes and cultural changes – and 11 chapters: an introduction, six addressing changes that concern natural aspects, and four exploring cultural changes and presenting the book’s conclusions. The content is based on a study conducted using a participatory observation/empirical method. Time series data from secondary sources is also included, helping to analyze the various changes. The findings are presented in the form of color graphs, models, maps, photographs, and tables.

The book offers a valuable resource for policymakers, and will prove equally useful for all other stakeholders, e.g. researchers, students and development agents.

This book presents the first empirically tested, comprehensive study on shifting cultivation in Mizoram. Shifting cultivation is a unique and centuries-old practice carried out by the people of Mizoram in Northeast India. Today, it is a non-economic activity as it does not produce sufficient crops, and as a result, the area under shifting cultivation is decreasing. Such cultivation leads to the burning and degradation of vast areas of forestland and therefore has adverse impacts on the floral and faunal resources. This book is a valuable resource for government workers, policymakers, academics, farmers and those who are directly or indirectly associated with practical farming, or with framing and implementing policies. It is equally important to master’s and Ph.D. students of geography, resource management, development, and environmental studies who are involved in research and development.

This book provides a detailed description of sustainable tourism development in the Uttarakhand Himalaya. Though the Uttarakhand Himalaya is bestowed with numerous locales of tourists/pilgrims’ interests, tourism has not yet been developed substantially. This book describes geographical and cultural components of tourism, major types of tourism and tourist places, tourist/pilgrim circuits, case studies of the important tourists/pilgrims’ routes, trends of tourism, development of homestay tourism, development of infrastructural facilities for tourism development, major constrains and prospects of sustainable tourism development, and conclusions. SWOC analysis of tourism activities has been carried out. The book is based on the author’s observation of tourism development in the Uttarakhand Himalaya. Further, large tourism data was gathered and analyzed, using a qualitative and a quantitative method, and a sustainable tourism model was developed. This book is very useful for students,research scholars, academicians, and policymakers. 

‘The Ganges: Cultural, Economic, and Environmental Importance’ is a geographical, cultural, economic, and environmental interpretation of the Ganga River. The Ganga River originates from Gaumukh- situated in the high Himalaya, flows through the world’s biggest fertile alluvial plain, and inlets into the Bay of Bengal at Ganga Sagar. It makes a unique natural and cultural landscape and is believed to be the holiest river of India. The Hindus called it ‘Mother Ganga’ and worship it. The towns/cities, situated on its bank, are world-famous and are known as the highland and valley pilgrimages. The water of the Ganga is pious, and the Hindus use it on different occasions while performing the rituals and customs. This book is unique because no previous study which presents a complete and comprehensive geographical description of the Ganga has been composed. This book presents the historical and cultural significance of the Ganga and its tributaries. Empirical, archival, and observation methods were applied to conduct this study. There are a total of 10 chapters in this book such as ‘Introduction’, ‘the Ganga Basin’, ‘Geography of the Ganga Basin’, ‘the Ganges System: Ganga and its Tributaries’, ‘Ganga between Gaumukh and Uttarkashi’, ‘the Major Cultural Towns’, ‘Major Fairs and Festivals’, ‘Economic Significance of the Ganga’, ‘Environmental Issues’, and ‘Conclusions’. The contents of the book are enriched by 89 figures, 15 tables, and substantial citations and references. 

The Himalaya is the new folded mountain system – the tallest and the youngest in the world. It has a rich diversity – natural and cultural, and diversity in all walks of life. Most of its uniqueness is unknown because of its remoteness. Even, the native people are not aware of them. This book aims to describe the uniqueness of the Central Himalaya in terms of its natural and cultural diversity in detail. Supported by original figures and primary data, this book is empirically tested. It is mainly based on observation and participation and the use of a qualitative approach. Although lots of work has been carried out on the various aspects of the Himalayan region yet, a detailed description of the natural and cultural diversity is yet to be done. This book steps forward to elaborate on some of the unique natural and cultural features of the Central Himalaya, which are worthy to be known about. It contains a total of 10 chapters. Four chapters are devoted to natural diversity and fourchapters comprise cultural diversity. Besides, the introduction and conclusions are the first and the last chapters of the book, respectively. The book is the first of its kind and will be useful to all stakeholders – students of all standards, research scholars, academicians, policymakers, native people, tourists, and the general public.

The farming system in the Central Himalayan Region is distinctive and unique, mainly focusing on the cultivation of traditional subsistence cereal crops. The agrobiodiversity in this region is rich, with the Central Himalaya growing numerous cultivars and crop races. The practice of cultivating many crops or cultivars in a single field is known as the ''Barahnaja System.'' Another peculiar system is the Sar/Sari system, where different crops grow in the two Sars during the same seasons, with one Sar left fallow for six months while the other grows crops. This century-old farming method involves plowing fields with oxen and using organic manure to enhance crop production and productivity. However, recent changes have been observed in the farming systems. The area under traditionally growing millets is declining. In river valleys and middle altitudes, there is a recent trend towards cultivating paddy and wheat. Unfortunately, the cultivation of temperate fruits – apple and citrus has seen a decline in terms of area, production, and productivity. Various factors are influ encing farming systems in the Central Himalaya, such as high climate variability and change, decreasing crop production and productivity, evolving food habits, and out-migration. The book contains 12 chapters illustrating introduction, land use and land cover change, cropping patterns, crop diversity and agro-ecological zones, farming systems and sustainable agriculture, climate change and its impact on agriculture, infrastructural facilities for sustainable agriculture, declining agriculture: a case study, crop productivity and suitability analyzes, agribusiness, policies and planning for sustainable agriculture, and conclusions. It serves as a valuable resource for students, academicians, researchers, policymakers, and farmers.