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Bugyals are alpine pasture lands, or
Bagji Bugyal
and Munsiyari.
"Withering of traditional institutions? An institutional analysis of the decline of migratory pastoralism in the rangelands of the Kailash Sacred Landscape, western Himalayas."
''Environmental Sociology'' 3, no. 1 (2017): 87–100. * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * {{coord missing, Uttarakhand Montane grasslands and shrublands Ecoregions of India Geography of Uttarakhand Grasslands of India
Bugyals are alpine pasture lands, or meadow
A meadow ( ) is an open habitat or field, vegetated by grasses, herbs, and other non- woody plants. Trees or shrubs may sparsely populate meadows, as long as they maintain an open character. Meadows can occur naturally under favourable con ...
s in India, in higher elevation range between and of the Himalayas in the Indian state of Uttarakhand
Uttarakhand (, ), also known as Uttaranchal ( ; List of renamed places in India, the official name until 2007), is a States and union territories of India, state in North India, northern India. The state is bordered by Himachal Pradesh to the n ...
, where they are called "nature’s own gardens". The topography of the terrain is either flat or sloped. The surface of these bugyals is covered with natural green grass and seasonal flowers. They are used by tribal herdsmen to graze their cattle. During the winter season the alpine meadows remain snow-covered. During summer months, the Bugyals present a riot of beautiful flowers and grass. As bugyals constitute very fragile ecosystems, particular attention needs to be given for their conservation.
Some of the notable bugyals are: Auli near Joshimath, Garsi, Kwanri, Gulabi Kantha, Bedni, Panwali Kantha and Kush Kalyan, Dayara, GidaraBagji Bugyal
and Munsiyari.
List of Bugyals
Conservation issues
Bugyal is a fragileecosystem
An ecosystem (or ecological system) is a system formed by Organism, organisms in interaction with their Biophysical environment, environment. The Biotic material, biotic and abiotic components are linked together through nutrient cycles and en ...
and it is essential to maintain a balance between ecology
Ecology () is the natural science of the relationships among living organisms and their Natural environment, environment. Ecology considers organisms at the individual, population, community (ecology), community, ecosystem, and biosphere lev ...
and environment. In this context a court case was filed by the public objecting to erection of the prefab houses and by introducing non-biodegradable matter in the upper meadows of the bugyals by the tourism departments. It was averred that the peace and tranquility of the bugyals was getting affected. The court had ordered that the polluter must pay for the damage to environment based on absolute liability principle, which covered payment of damages to the affected people but also to compensate for all costs for restoration of the degraded environments.
See also
*Meadow
A meadow ( ) is an open habitat or field, vegetated by grasses, herbs, and other non- woody plants. Trees or shrubs may sparsely populate meadows, as long as they maintain an open character. Meadows can occur naturally under favourable con ...
* Grassland
A grassland is an area where the vegetation is dominance (ecology), dominated by grasses (Poaceae). However, sedge (Cyperaceae) and rush (Juncaceae) can also be found along with variable proportions of legumes such as clover, and other Herbaceo ...
* Shola
A shola is the local name for a patch of stunted Montane grasslands and shrublands, tropical montane forest found in valleys amid rolling grassland in the higher montane regions of South India, largely in Kerala, Karnataka and Tamilnadu. These ...
References
Bibliography
*Pandey, Abhimanyu, Nawraj Pradhan, Swapnil Chaudhari, and Rucha Ghate"Withering of traditional institutions? An institutional analysis of the decline of migratory pastoralism in the rangelands of the Kailash Sacred Landscape, western Himalayas."
''Environmental Sociology'' 3, no. 1 (2017): 87–100. * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * {{coord missing, Uttarakhand Montane grasslands and shrublands Ecoregions of India Geography of Uttarakhand Grasslands of India