System Synergy of Farming System and Common Property Resources in Mountain Regions: A Case Study of Himachal Pradesh

The study conducted in the hilly region of Himachal Pradesh has revealed that the average size of operational holding in the region is small (0.69 ha) and therefore the common property resources (CPRs) assume significant importance for sustaining the livelihood of people. The ‘kuhls’ emanating water of CPRs are the main sources of irrigation. The consumption of different products from CPR lands has been found to increase with decrease in the size of landholdings, which underlines the need to increase the productivity of CPR lands. The analysis of linkages between different farm sectors has revealed strong forward linkages of CPRs with livestock and agriculture and weak backward linkages with other sectors. The farm forestry and CPR lands have depicted weak linkage, but strong indirect linkages. The gravity water irrigation kuhls (channels) have also revealed strong linkages with agriculture and livestock. The analysis of linkages has suggested that there is a need to strengthen the backward linkages of agriculture, livestock and farm forestry with CPRs. The study has suggested to strengthen the management and conservation of CPRs.