In the sweltering summer of Budgam, thousands of sheep and goats are left hungry and overheated in open fields with little grass to graze on. Every year, nomadic herders like the Bakerwals migrate to the upper Himalayan pastures in search of cooler climates and fresh grazing grounds. But this year, security concerns following the Pahalgam terror attack and heightened India-Pakistan tensions have led the government to deny access to these seasonal migrations.
The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has predicted a severe heatwave in the Kashmir Valley, compounding the herders’ problems. Experts warn that excessive heat leads to sickness and even death among livestock. Adding to their woes, wild animals hiding in the bushes often attack the herds at night, causing further losses.
Abdul Rehman, a local shepherd from Doodhpathri in Budgam, said,
“We are grazing more than twenty thousand sheep and goats in this small field. There’s not enough grass, and the authorities have ignored our pleas to allow migration.”Bashir Ahmed Chopan added,
“The mountain pastures are safer and provide more fodder. This year, we’ve been restricted even in Doodhpathri—allowed to graze only during the day and forced to return at night. It’s unsustainable.”
Chopan emphasized the added risks of disease caused by the dust and heat, and called on Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha and former CM Omar Abdullah to intervene.
“Let us go to our traditional pastures before we lose more animals.”
Muhammad Ashraf Bajad, a lifelong livestock rearer, criticized the lack of official support, saying,
“No teams from the sheep or animal husbandry departments have visited. Our sick animals are suffering without treatment.”
Bajad said that the shepherds were unable to earn their living, making the sheep owners upset with them. “We have so far failed to convince the government to allow us to transport the livestock to the pastures in the upper mountains, due to which owners will not even pay us wages,” he claimed.
the District Sheep Husbandry Officer, Budgam, Muhammed Maroof Shah, said, “We have brought this issue to the notice of the district administration, SSP Budgam and DC Budgam. They will take a final decision on this matter soon. Till then, they should graze their sheep in the orchards so that they can also get grass and get relief from the intense heat,” he said.
Shah further said that the department was in touch with all the Gujjars, Bakarwals, and shepherds and were talking to them and had also written to the district administration about this. “We have also issued an advisory to all the sheep and goat herders on how to herd their sheep,” he said.
The herders were not allowed to go to the pastures located above the mountains due to security reasons amid the heightened tensions between India and Pakistan. This comes after the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack, which killed 25 tourists and a local pony operator. In response, the Indian defence forces launched ‘Operation Sindoor’, targeting nine terrorist hideouts in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir and Pakistan, in which over 100 terrorists were neutralised.