HILLY AREAS
PLANNING POLICY
SUBMITTED BY:
MUKUL SWAMI
2016MARCH011
HILLY AREA
PLANNING POLICY
The distinction between a hill and a mountain is unclear
and largely subjective, but a hill is universally considered
to be less tall and less steep than a mountain. In the United
Kingdom, geographers historically regarded mountains as
hills greater than 1,000 feet (300 m) above sea level, which
formed the basis of the plot of the 1995 film The
Englishman Who Went Up a Hill But Came Down a
Mountain. In contrast, hillwalkers have tended to regard
mountains as peaks 2,000 feet (610 m) above sea level: the
Oxford English Dictionary also suggests a limit of 2,000
feet (610 m) and Whittow[1] states "Some authorities
regard eminences above 600 m (2,000 ft) as mountains,
those below being referred to as hills." The Great Soviet
Encyclopedia defines hill as an upland with a relative
height up to 200 m (660 ft).[2]
Today, a mountain is usually defined in the UK and
Ireland as any summit at least 2,000 feet (or 610 meters)
high,[3][4][5][6][7] while the official UK government's definition
of a mountain is a summit of 600 meters or higher.[8] Some
definitions include a topographical prominence
requirement, typically 100 feet (30 m) or 500 feet (152 m).[5]
In practice, mountains in Scotland are frequently referred
to as "hills" no matter what their height, as reflected in
names such as the Cuillin Hills and the Torridon Hills. In
Wales, the distinction is more a term of land use and
appearance and has nothing to do with height. For a while,
the U.S. defined a mountain as being 1,000 feet (304.8 m)
or more tall. Any similar landform lower than this height
was considered a hill. The United States Geological Survey
(USGS), however, has concluded that these terms do not in
fact have technical definitions in the U.S.[9]
A hillock is a small hill. Other words include knoll and (in
Scotland, Northern Ireland and northern England) its
variant, knowe.[10] Artificial hills may be referred to by a
variety of technical names, including mound and tumulus.
Hills of the Judean Desert
Hills may form through geomorphic phenomena: faulting,
erosion of larger landforms, such as mountains and
movement and deposition of sediment by glaciers (e.g.
moraines and drumlins or by erosion exposing solid rock
which then weathers down into a hill.) The rounded peaks
of hills results from the diffusive movement of soil and
regolith covering the hill, a process known as downhill
creep.
Various names used to describe types of hill, based on
appearance and method of formation. Many such names
originated in one geographical region to describe a type of
hill formation peculiar to that region, though the names
are often adopted by geologists and used in a wider
geographical context. These include:
Drumlin – an elongated whale-shaped hill formed by
glacial action.
Butte – an isolated hill with steep sides and a small
flat top, formed by weathering.
Kuppe – a rounded hill or low mountain, typical of
central Europe
Tor – a rock formation found on a hilltop; also used
to refer to the hill, especially in South West England.
Puy – used especially in the Auvergne, France, to
describe a conical volcanic hill.
Pingo – a mound of earth-covered ice found in the
Arctic and Antarctica
It is now recognised that the pathways of development adopted in
the past have resulted in an uneven distribution of the benefits of
economic growth as between geographical areas and also between
socio-economic groups. It was in realisation of this phenomenon
that certain specific target group oriented programmes, such as
SFDA arid MFAL were initiated during the Fourth and Fifth Five
Year Plan periods. Special programmes for drought-prone, desert
and tribal areas were also initiated. But in spite of these
programmes, certain geographical areas present some very special
ecological and socio-cultural features, which unless specifically
taken into account do not permit the present planning process and
the schemes developed within it, to be of major assistance to them.
The Hill Areas of the country belong to this category.
25.2 The development of the hilly areas in the country, however,
cannot be undertaken in isolation from the adjoining plains, with
which their economy is closely inter-related. The hilly areas
influence to some extent the climate of the plains; they contain the
sources, the catchments and the water-sheds of several major river
systems which flow to the plains; they abound in forests, plant and
mineral wealth as well as hydel energy resources. Our experience
of development planning during the last three decades has
increasingly underlined the fact that anicss adequate programmes
are evolved for the conservation and proper utilisation of the
resources of the hill areas, not only the problems of these areas
will continue to remain unsolved, but the economy of the plains
may also be adversely affected. Symptomatic of this aspect are the
rapid siltation of dams, reservoirs, flooding, changes in agro-
climatic conditions and pressure on the employment market
because of the large-scale migration of people particularly men
from hill areas. Development of the resources of the hill areas is
hence necessary in order to enable the population living in these
areas, who are by and large very poor, to have their share of the
benefits accruing from moderp science and technology. But such
development, however, has to proceed in a way that the eco-
system constituting the hills and the plains, is not irreversibly
damaged, but is preserved in a suitable condition for future
generations. There is, therefore, a paramount need for conceiving
an integrated strategy for the development of the hill areas based
on sound principles of ecology and economics. It was in realisation
of this need that special hill area development programmes were
initiated during the Fifth Plan. During the Sixth Plan also, the hill
areas of the country will continue to receive special attention on
account of their difficult terrain, agro-climatic conditions, historical
lag in economic development, their environmental impact on the
plains and above all> their great growth potential.
CATEGORISATION OF HILL AREAS
25.3 The hill areas fall broadly into two categones, namely, (i) those
that are co-extensive with the boundaries of the State or the Union
Territory and (ii) these which form a part of a State.
25.4 The development of both categories of hill areas requires
appropriate programmes of development.
Hill States
25.5 The hill areas which are self-contained politico-administrative
units are being treated as Special Category Slates whose outlays
are met, substantially out of Central assistance. These are the
States and Union Territories of the North-Eastern Region, Jammu
and Kashmir and Himachal Pradesh. The investments needed for
meeting the vast infrastructural gaps in communications, transport,
power generation and transmission, for the development of stable
and diversified agriculture in place of the extensive practice of
jhum-ing, horticulture, plantation crops giving rise to low volume
and high-value products and large-scale afforestation with a view
to restoring and protecting ecology, are heavy. On the other hand,
it would take a considerable time for these areas to build up an
adequate resource base. In view of this, the bulk of the outlays are
provided out of Central Assistance.
North-Eastern Council
25.6 For the integrated development of the Hill States and Union
Territories of the North-Eastern region, the Central Government set
up the North Eastern Council in 1971 by an Act of Parliament. The
North-Eastern Council started functioning with the commencement
of the Fifth Five Year Plan. The Council takes up such schemes as
are of common interest to more than one State or Union Territory
and to the region as a whole under its development plans. The
Council has played an important role in the' development of inter-
regional programmes of power generation and transmission,
construction of roads, agriculture, animal husbandry, fisheries etc.
It has been supporting research and experimental projects. A
training infrastructure is being built up for manpower development
in the region under the auspices of the Council.
Hill Areas in Composite States of. the Himalayan and sub-
Himalayan region
25.7 Hill areas forming part of larger composite State occur in
Assam, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal in^tlie Himalayan and sub-
Himalayaii region. Although the primary responsibility for the
development of these hill areas is that of the concerned State
Governments, the need for Central' assistance has been
recognised even as far back as the Second Five Year Plan.
Arrangements for providing Central assi-^atlce to the Hill Areas
Development Programme have been further systematised since the
commencement of the Fifth Five Year Plan. The Special Central
Assistance is being allocated among the constituent States, giving
equal weightage to the area and population of the hill areas.
25.8 Since the Fifth Plan, the concept of a sub-plan has been
introduced, in order to ensure complementarity and linkages
among the schemes formulated under the various sectors of the
State Plan and out of the Central additive. A statement showing the
Area, Population and DistrictsjTalukas covered under the Hill Areas
Programme is given below:—
Hill Area Area Population (1971) No. of Districts
('000 Sq. (Lakh)
Kms)
Assam HiilAic- 15-2 4-55 2 Districts (Karbi
as . Anglong ami North
Cachar)
Uttar Pradesh 51-1 38-22 8 Districts
Hill (Dehradun, Pauri,
Garhwal, Tehri
Areas. Garhwal, Chamoli,
Uttarkashi, Almora,
Pithoragarh and
Nainital)
West-Bengal 2-4 4'80 3 Sub-Divisions of
Hill Areas. Darjeeling District
viz. Sub-Divisions of
Sadar Kalimpong
and Kurseong.
Western Ghats and other Hill Areas
25.9 The Western Ghats region consists of a contiguous area of 132
talukas in the States of Maha-rashtra, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu,
Kerala and the Union Territory of Goa. The total area is 134.5
thousand Sq. Kms. and the population in this area is 26.49 millions.
Central assistance is provided for development programmes in
these areas, though the concept of a sub-plan has not been
introduced. The other hill areas include Tamil Nadu Hill Areas (in
addition to the Western Ghats areas) with an area of 2.5 thousand
Sq. Kms. and population of 4.94 lakhs.
NEW THRUSTS AND FUTURE DIRECTION
25.10 The experience gained from the working or the sub-Plan
suggests the need for greater horizontal integration among the
various elements of a development programme. Mere
regionalisation of the area budget alone will not help. Equally there
is a need tor a balance in emphasis between beneficiary-oriented
and infrastructural development programmes, keeping in view the
vital importance of ecological restoration and conservation. Better
water and land-use and control of soil erosion through watershed
management, afforestation, silvi-pasture development and
replacement of annual crops with perennial shrubs and trees and
plantation crops in steep slopes and development of other high
value-low volume crops linked with processing and marketing ai'e
some of the methods of promoting sustainable development. Rural
and small industries and electronic and precision instruments
industries will also be promoted.
Land Use Pattern
25.11 The current land-use pattern either in the form of jhuming in
the eastern Himalayan region or in the form of indiscriminate
deforestation for a variety oi purposes in the Western region is
leading to eco-catastrophies of various kinds. It is widely accepted
that in the hills and in undulating terrain, it would be wise to grow
perennial plants and to promote scientific animal husbandry.
Hor;iculture, particularly apple cultivation, has received widespread
interest not only in Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh and
Uttar Pradesh Hills but also in Arunachal Pradesh and parts of
eastern Himalayan region. This has to be supported by appropriate
steps in post-harvest technology and marketing. Shortage of
packing material in Himachal Pradesh is leading to deforestation of
valuable timber trees. Transport of produce in the north-eastern
region is another bottleneck. The emphasis, therefore, has to be on
high value—low volume crops and products. In some parts of the
hills, out-migration of men has taken place, making it necessary to
introduce agricultural implements and muchinery which could be
handled by women.
Soil Erosion
25.12 The damage that soil erosion causes to the hill areas,
including its impact on irrigation projects is well known. In this
context, it is necessary to evolve ;in integrated strategy in the hill
areas of mini-watershed management. Besides the technology as
applied to these areas in fields like road construction, power,
irrigation and industrial projects would need constant review to
avoid unfavourable consequences like land slides and erosion.
Forestery
25.13 Forestry is essential not only for eco-preser-vation but also
for fuel, human and animal nutrition, limber and raw-material tor
industry. It also provides wind barrier to agriculture and shade for
plantations of coffee, tea, spices, etc. Preventing further
deforestation and promoting extensive planting of these are both
necessary. Afforestation of catchment areas is of very high priority
for preventing soil erosion as well as regulating water supply.
Suitable agro-forestry techniques would be fostered in such areas.
Animal Husbandry
25.14 In spite of the opportunities offered by favourable climate, the
economic potential offered for dairying, sheep and other animal
husbandry in the hill areas has not been fully tapped. In many hill
regions the problem, is of overgrazing due to uncontrolled animal
population and poor management. The scientific management of
these lands can increase the yield of fodder and support effectively
a large animal population. The animal husbandry programme will
need a strong preventive and curative animal health programme,
together with processing and marketing oT the produce.
Conservation and Environment
25.15 The hill areas, particularly, the Himalayan region is rich in
genetic material of medicinal and food plants, fruits, including
citrus and a wide range of other economic plants, orchids and
other flowers. Some rare wild life still occurs in these areas. It
would be important to have an integrated strategy for the
preservation of the valuable flora and fauna through a chain of
biosphere reserves, national parks and gene-sanctuaries.
25.16 For the scientific planning of the hill areas in the country,
vital information on resources e.g., occurrence of minerals, soil
characteristics, vegetational types and characteristics, estimation
of the volume of surface and sub-surface flow in watersheds, etc.,
is required. Such information also needs to be constantly updated.
Remote-sensing techniques and air-photo interpretation combined
with ground truth studies hold great possibilities for this purpose.
A perspective plan spelling out the long-term and short-term
develop ments in the area will be drawn up. Plans will be drawn up
for the regional, sub-regional, taluka (block) and settlement levels.
25.17 While the use of legal and executive powers to provide
necessary protection to the environment should be made effective,
far more reliance should be placed on people's action to achieve
the desired results. The need for increasing public awareness
about the environmental issues and to stimulate public
participation in activities for environmental protection has been
emphasised- in the Chapter on "Development and the
Environment". The measures indicated for the above purpose
would be vigorously implemented in the Hffl areas.
25.18 The concept of eco-development needs to be built into the
programmes selected for implementation. Keeping constant need
for eco-preservation in view, it is necessary that economic projects
located in these areas build into their cost, the cost of eco-
restoration. A paper project, for example, should include the cost of
afforestation and its economic viability determined accordingly.
Planning
25.19 During the Sixth Plan, an integrated strategy, as outlined
above, will be pursued. The planning process so far developed for
the hill areas would be reviewed both in its operational mechanics
and content. The programmes of ecological conservation in some
areas would require a regional approach and coordinated action by
several states. The Western Ghats region and the Himalayan
region, both cut across several states. For these regions,
appropriate implementation mechanisms would be devised for
ensuring a regional overview and action at the national level,
25.20 To summarise, new approaches will have to be introduced for
meeting the basic needs of hill people comprising water, food,
work, fodder, feed, fuel and fertiliser. Water will have to be
harvested in small ponds and reservoirs on a watershed basis and
stored for use during winter and spring. Since land in the hills is
best used for perennial crops, it will be advisable to store the
needed food-grains in small storage structures at numerous points
so that food availability attains the requisite degree of viability for
persuading fanners to abandon jhumming and adopting cultivation
of annual crops in steep slopes. "Store water and food wherever
possible" has to be a major motto of the IRD programme in hill
areas. Work will have to be provided under NREP and development
projects in the fields of forestry, animal husbandry, fisheries,
horticulture, agro-forestry and cottage industries. Since, women do
most of the jobs in hills, they will have to be given opportunities for
upgrading they skills in Krishi and Van-Viyyan Kendras. The
District Manpower Planning and Employment Generation Councils
will have to prepare detailed blue-prints and action plans for this
purpose. Fodder and Teed plants will have to be grown extensively
under the social forestry and agro-forestry programmes. Until
adequate fodder and feed become locally available, it will be
necessary to establish "Fodder and Feed Banks" at suitable places
involving the supply of enriched cellulosic wastes and straw.
Arrangements for fuel-svpply will have to be made under the village
woodlots programme. Quick growing fuel trees will have to be
cultivated under the social forestry programme. The Inter-
University Eco-development camps to be organised with the help of
the staff and students of universities and the Eco-development
forces consisting of ex-servicemen will have to play a leading role
in spearheading the afforestation movement. This programme will
have to be monitored and scientifically supported by the Himalayan
Research net-work to be constituted with the involvement of all the
12 universities in the Himalayas. A similar programme will have to
be organised for the Western Ghats region
25.21 The current practice of maintaining a large number or
unproductive cattle just for the purpose of getting manure should
be rendered unnecessary by providing the needed nutrients to
crops through biological and mineral fertilisers. Cultivation of
legumes both for fodder and grain purposes together with suitable
rhizohal cultures will have to be taken up on a large scale in forest
canopies.
25.22 If a new movement for the promotion of scientific land and
water use and human resource development in the hills is launched
during this Plan, the extensive damage now taking place in the hills
to basic life support systems, both because of the greed of the rich
and the genuine needs of the poor for fuel, fodder, feed and
fertiliser can be arrested. Success in protecting the hill eco-
systems will determine the future fate of agriculture in the adjoining
plains.
Outlays
25.23 The Plan of the North-Eastern Council is fully funded by the
Central Government. The programmes are implemented through
the constituent units or Central organisations. The NEC's five year
plan 1974— 79 was of Rs. 90 crores and actual expenditure was Rs.
86.67 crores. The outlay provided in the Sixth Five Year Plan for
NEC's programmes is Rs. 340 crores.
25.24 The provision for Special Central Assistance for hill areas in
composite states of the Himalayan and sub-Himalayan region and
the Western Ghats and other Hill areas was Rs. 170 crores in the
Fifth Plan, the actual expenditure during 1974—79 being Rs. 162.65
crores. In the Sixth Plan, the provision has been raised to Rs. 560
crores.
