Population growth, agricultural land use change and implication for food security in Meghalaya plateau, India

The paper outlines regional population growth and its linkages with changes in agricultural landscape, particularly of commercial crops and its impact on food security in Meghalaya. Traditionally the tribal people in the Northeast including those in Meghalaya practiced shifting cultivation in the hill slopes and settled cultivation in the river valleys. With relatively low density of population and long Jhum (shifting cultivation) cycles, these communities could manage their livelihood. The situation changed drastically over the years due largely to phenomenal increase in population in the wake of substantive improvement in health infrastructure and declining mortality. This has made the traditional agricultural practices unviable and unsustainable. Search for alternative livelihood became inevitable. Traditional practice of Jhum is no more adequate to support a large number of people due to progressive decline in the Jhum cycle that had debilitating effects on land quality. Land degradation, soil erosion, declining fertility and harvests have a cumulative effect on the lives and livelihoods of the people. The change however has been felt by people as one of the coping strategies. The study underscores the interconnectedness of population dynamics, changes in agricultural landscape, local food systems and food security.