These Solutions are part of NCERT Solutions for Class 9 Social Science. Here we have given NCERT Solutions for Class 9 Social Science History Chapter 5 Pastoralists in the Modern World. Free PDF download of NCERT solutions for Class 9 Social Science (India and the Contemporary World – I) Chapter 5 – Pastoralists in the Modern World. All questions are explained by the expert Social Science teacher and as per NCERT (CBSE) guidelines.
Question 1.
Explain why nomadic tribes need to move from one place to another. What are the advantages to the environment of this continuous movement?
Answer: Nomadic tribes move from one location in order to maintain their sustenance and way of lie. As they are involved in animal husbandry, the availability of water is paramount to their existence along with fresh pastures for their animals. When the pasture is depleted they move to next area looking for new grazing grounds.
The advantages of the environment are as follows:
(I) The environment gets a chance to regrow and recover, thus maintaining the ecological balance of the area.
(II) It prevents overgrazing as this will lead to depletion of future grazing grounds.
(III) The manure of the animals helps in fertilising the soil, which will be instrumental in repeating the nomadic process of moving from one location to another a possibility.
Question 2.
Discuss why the colonial government in India brought in the following laws. In each case, explain how the laws changed the lives of pastoralists- Waste Land Rules, Forest Acts, Criminal Tribes Act, Grazing Tax.
Answer:
Waste Land Rules: Uncultivated land was taken over by the colonial government and given to selected individuals. This rule was called Waste Land rules. It was brought into force during the mid-nineteenth century. Some of the individuals, who were given this land, by the government, were made headmen. This assured the colonial government their loyalty and support.
The wastelands that were taken over, were actually grazing tracts, used by the nomadic pastoralists. When this wasteland was brought under cultivation by the new owners, the pastoralists lost their grazing grounds and were put to a lot of hardship
Forest Acts: The colonial government passed the Indian Forest Acts in 1865. This Act was amended in the year 1878. Under this amendment the forests were divided into 3 categories, – reserved, protected and village forests.
The reserved forests were usually forests which produced commercially valuable timber. The Forest Act ensured that the total wealth of these forests could be enjoyed by the colonists alone, as no one was allowed access to these forests.
Under this Act nomads were not allowed to graze their cattle in these forests. They had to get permit to graze their cattle in a few of these forests. If they overstayed their permit period they were fined or punished. This left the nomads with no pasture for their herds.
Criminal Tribes Act 1871: The colonial government wanted to rule over a settled population. They wanted them to live in fixed places, with fixed rights on particular fields. Such a population could be ruled easily. Settled population was seen as peace loving and law abiding. The colonial people were suspicious of nomadic and pastoral tribes, who moved from place to place and hawkeld their goods. They had no fixed place of residence and moved every season to find pasture for the animals.
In 1871, the colonial government passed the Criminal Tribes Act. According to this Act many communities of pastoralists, craftsmen and traders were classified as Criminal Tribes. These communities had to live only in notified village settlements. They were not allowed to move out without a permit. The police kept a continuous watch on these people.
Grazing Tax: The aim of the colonial government was to collect as much revenue as possible, so tax was imposed on land, water, salt, trade goods and animals. By 1880, each pastoralist was given a pass. Each cattle herder had to pay tax for each cattle head. The amount paid was entered on the pass.
Question 3.
Give reasons to explain why the Maasai community lost their grazing lands.
Answer: In the late nineteenth century, in what would be knowns as the ‘scramble for Africa’, European imperial powers slicing up the region into different colonies with little to no regard about the local sentiments. In 1885, the land of the Maasai, Maasailand, was cut into half with an international boundary between British Kenya and German Tanganyika. As a result, the best grazing lands were reserved for white settlers with Maasai being pushed into a small area in southern Kenya and northern Tanzania.
Large areas of grazing land were also turned into game reserves like the Maasai Mara and Samburu National Park in Kenya and Serengeti Park in Tanzania. Pastoralists were not allowed to enter these reserves; they could neither hunt animals nor graze their herds in these areas.
Question 4.
There are similarities in the way in which the modern world forced changes in the lives of pastoral communities in India and East Africa. Write about any two examples of changes which were similar for Indian pastoralists and the Maasai herders.
Answer:
(a) In India, by the mid-nineteenth century, various forests acts were passed. Through these acts some forests which produced commercially valuable timber like deodar and sal were declared ‘reserved”. No pastoralist was allowed access to these forests.
In protected forests some customary rights of the pastoralists were granted but their movement was restricted. In Maasailand, large areas of grazing land were turned into game reserves. Pastoralists could not enter the reserves, they could neither hunt animals nor graze their herds.
(b) Forest Acts changed the lives of the pastoralists. They could not enter many forests, which had earlier provided forage for their cattle. They needed a permit for entry, their entry and departure was specified and the number of days they could spend in the Forest was limited. The pastoral groups in Africa were forced to stay within the limits of the reserves. They could not move out with their stock without special permits. It was difficult to get permits.
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