Himalayas Crumbling Under Unsustainable Development: Dr. Devinder Sharma
Calls for Agroecological Shift, Policy Overhaul to Save Fragile Mountains
Shimla: “The fury with which the mountains are crumbling is worrisome,” warned noted agriculture and food policy expert Dr. Devinder Sharma, flagging the urgent need for a sustainable transformation of Himalayan farming systems.
Speaking at a session on “Changing Agroecological Landscape in the Himalayas,” chaired by IMI President Ramesh Negi, Dr. Sharma said policymakers keep repeating the same old lines about sustainability but “it doesn’t seem to have hit where it needs to hit most.”
He said the recent spell of heavy rains and cloudbursts — from Uttarkashi in Uttarakhand to Himachal Pradesh and Jammu & Kashmir — has again exposed the growing fragility of the mountains.
“The frightening visuals of Dharali village in Uttarkashi being swept away by flash floods are a grim reminder of what’s already happening, not what’s waiting to happen,” he cautioned.
Dr. Sharma said the world is slowly realizing that agroecological farming is the only sustainable way forward.
“Global climatic changes have shown how food production has itself become an environmental hazard. Agriculture alone contributes one-third of global greenhouse gases — pushing us from climate change to global boiling,” he said.
With large-scale migration from rural mountain areas, Dr. Sharma stressed that “the challenge is to make mountain farming economically viable and ecologically sustainable.”
Agroecology, he added, must now be treated as a “pivotal climate mitigation and adaptation strategy.”
He called on the government to prioritize Himalayan regions under the ₹2,481-crore National Mission on Natural Farming, and to first transform the research agenda of agricultural universities.
“Most mountain universities still follow the research priorities of the plains. This has to change,” he asserted.
While appreciating NITI Aayog’s support for natural farming, he said the think tank had missed one crucial link — the need for assured and attractive prices to organic growers.
“Consumers are ready to pay more for organic produce. But the farmer should get that benefit, not the middlemen,” Dr. Sharma remarked.
Citing Himachal Pradesh’s example, he said the state has provided a “price framework that needs to be replicated.”
The government has announced higher MSPs for organic milk, wheat, and maize, proving that state-led price support can make natural farming viable.
He also referred to Andhra Pradesh’s Community-Managed Natural Farming (CMNF) model, where farmers get an incentive of ₹800 per bag for reducing urea use.
“Such incentives can make the economics of farming work for the Himalayas,” Dr. Sharma said.
Chairing the session, Ramesh Negi, President of the Integrated Mountain Initiative, said Dr. Sharma’s call for an agroecological transition “resonates deeply with the vision of sustainable mountain development.”
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