1. CPD 532, Unit 1, sub unit a Population-Resource-Poverty Population-Environment-Poverty (Development) discourse in Nepal

2. Population growth and natural resources in Nepal

3. Change in Nepal’s population across the regions Two patterns of change: –Fertility –Migration

4. Regional scene

7. Neo-Malthusians in Nepal

10. Food production in Nepal

13. Food balance in Nepal

14. Migration

18. Summary of Nepal Malthusian hypothesis working in Nepal Increase in Population Fragmenting land and dwindling forest Increasing vulnerability Food / agriculture development New opportunities for livelihood (low infrastructure and HDI) Responses – Extensification – Intensification – Diversification – Migration What are consequences? Livelihood insecurity and conflict As discussed in THED

19. Himalayan environmental crisis THED: Population growth is driving relentless env degradation Physical, human, socio-economic and political process are linked into a cause-effect relationship pushing both Himalayan and North Indian plains to the brink of env and socio- economic collapse. Many theorists: – Eckholm, Myres, Claire Sterling Counter-theorists: – Ives, Thompson, Blaikie

20. Himalayan Environmental crisis 8-point scenario (Ives and Messerli, 1989): – Rapid population growth after 1950 – Population explosion insides and in-migration from India increased demand for natural resources (ag land, fuelwood, fodder, timber) – Vicious cycle: demand of increasing subsistence population  pressure over forest cover  massive deforestation (loss of half of forest cover in 30 yrs 1950-80  no accessible forest by 2000 (crisis situation) – Deforestation and cutting terraces in hill / mountain slope  soil erosion, landslide, loss of productive land  disruption of normal hydro-cycle – Resulting into flood and siltation: increased run-off during summer monsoon, disastrous flood and siltation in plains and declining dry season flow (crisis in plains) – Increasing sediment flow: extending G-B delta and forming new islands – Loss of ag land  deforestation  more terrace to grow subsistence crop. Large distance for forest supply, animal dung as fuel – Animal dung as fuel: no natural fertilizer for terraced soil, lowering crop yield, weakened soil structure, increase in erosion and land slide. Agriculture expansion  more tree cut in marginal slope  more land slide

21. Env crisis Other facets: Population growth and finite land  declining per-capita holding Burdens to women: to collect resources (impact in next generation) Impact on domestic animal: no fodder, decline in animal husbandry, impact on land

22. Env Crisis Series of linked vicious circle running downward spiral Difficulties in breaking the circle (env and SE crisis) Fragile political balance – Outmigration: impact in ‘origin’ and ‘destination’ Destabilizing pressure in hills – Absolute deforestation – Lowered crop-productivity – Increase in farming population taking low nutrition – Progressive mountain desertification – Impact in India and Bangladesh (flood, damage, irrigation canals) Nepal’s top-soil in Bay of Bengal (Nepal to claim, India and BD to defend militarily) Few million Nepalese hill farmers are responsible for the massive landscape and climatic changes that are affecting the lives and property of several hundred million people in Gangetic India and Bangladesh

23. THED in political and historical context (Guthman) Crisis narration is justification for various aid- based projects (hegemonic discourse) Counter-arguments: bio-physical explanation (Ives), political-economic (Blaikie) and Institutional (Thompson) Historical contexts (3 successive aid-regime) – Modernization (1951-73) – Basic need (1974-84) – Neo-liberalization (1985-late 1990s) – Conflict and inclusion (2000s)

24. Environmental security Renewed version of THED to create new-world order (Thompson) Neo-Malthusians discourse (e.g. Homer-Dixon) of population increase, resource scarcity leading to conflict and violence in developing countries (Discourse of environmental security) Other alternative discourses of environmental conflict – Resource scarcity hypothesis (Homer-Dixon, Kahl) – Resource curse hypothesis (Paul Collier) – Mal-distribution hypothesis (Watts and Peluso) – NEXT TIME : Read various perspectives in Khagram and Ali and in Kahl