Geoscience Reference
In-Depth Information
SIMKOT
Khaagaalgaon
Syaandaa
Khankhe
40 km
Location of case study sites in Humla District
Figure 11.2
base their livelihood on trade in non-timber forest products (NTFP), furu (a
wooden cup used by Lamas and Tibetans for tea), grains, rice and salt, with
Tibet and southern regions. Living conditions observed during fieldwork
appeared relatively better than in the two other villages, with most households
having improved cooking stoves and functioning sanitary facilities. In addition,
the child mortality rate reported during interviews was much lower than in the
other villages (see Table 11.1 ) .
The second and the third case-study villages are inhabited by Nepali-speaking
people where the Hindu caste system is a predominant aspect of the social structure.
These villagers depend mainly on agriculture and livestock, in addition to some
trade in NTFP and with rice and grain. Syaandaa has about 152 households (Roy
2010) and is situated on a mountain ridge at an elevation of 2747 masl (ibid.), a
few hours' walk from Khaagaalgaon. The third village, Khankhe, is situated in
Lower Humla, two to four days' walk to the south of Simkot, at an elevation
of around 1700 msal, and is home to around 94 households (own data). While
Syaandaa is inhabited mostly by people belonging to the Chhetri-Byansi group,
a high caste in the Hindu caste system, the inhabitants of Khankhe are divided
into two castes: the Dalits , low-caste groupings, and the higher-caste Thakuri.
Poverty in Syaandaa and Khankhe is more pronounced than in Khaagaalgaon, and
sanitation facilities are poor or non-existent. In Syaandaa, almost all households
interviewed had lost at least one child under the age of one year, and some families
had lost as many as six children.
 
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