Pahari Women undoubtly play a unique role in the socio-economic setup. Their socio-economic contribution towards family and community is highly significant. Agriculture and agriculture related activities absolutely dependent on women. Women generally work more than 15 hours a day, attending to agricultural work, cattle, and collection of fuel, fodder and water as well as the normal duties within their homes.they have traditional knowledge and skills of agriculture and allied activitiesWomen have always been an active part of the workforce due to their active participation in agriculture, forest protection, cattle care and dairying.
They wake up before the sun, and work all day, in their homes, in the field, tending to their children and the men in their families and the livestock. They started their routine work from offering Prayers and Pujas then looking after the cattle and removing the dirt and dung from cattle shed then wash and clean their hands and put the grass in trough or take them out from shed and then put the grass then take some vessels made up of clay or silver and milk the cow or befallo.After milking ,women usually prepare breakfast or morning tea then they get their wards ready for schools and Anganwadis to get education and wards have to travel 1 to 3 km to reach Primary school and upto 5 km to Middle school and upto 10 to 12 km to reach High or Higher Secondary school .After getting relief from kitchen works ,it is pertinent that almost all Pahari households keep some cattle. Once it was the indigenous hill-cattle that were popular – small, sure-footed, and so well-adapted to the terrain. But then exotic breeds jersey made an appearance now the demand of feed and fodder increased which is the primary job of women including the mucking and milking .
After sending the wards to school ,women's usually untie their cattle for grazing in pastures.While grazing of cattle in Pastures ,women cut fuel and fodder .From their house to their pastures or fields travel up and down on treachorously narrow,tough , and stony path, cuts through a forest, carrying on their backs heavy loads of fuel and fodder.Usually they go twice to collect fuel and fodder After grazing of cattles they brings fuel or fodder with them then prepare Lunch and again repeat the activity of morning except the wards.Some time women works in field whole day or graze the cattles whole day in far off forest ,they take with them a modest meal and take water from springs and pass their meal nutriated day . She serve meals to all the family members then eat herself at last Women work in the field from 4 pm to 7 pm every day.
The women grow different types of vegetable , potato, Rajmah and corn are sun-dried, and some of this is pounded into flour. In the winter months,oil seed like mustard ,Turnip etc on their land, apart from cearls.Male members only ploughed the terraced plots known as Dogi with bulls and rest of work performed by Pahari women.
They put the dung and dirt in Basket and throw it into field while going in fields for normal work and then bring fuel or fodder in same basket and then prepare the dinner for family .Household work is a mainstay, as are agricultural activities.
They stocked up wood ,feed ,fodder and other ediable items for winter particularly the snowy days and have to stay inside for many weeks. women gather the cones of different coniferous trees particularly of pine from the forest and burnt for warmth during winter. In their traditional dress ,pahari women dot the hills, hunched-up and hard-at-work, scy thing and bundling bales of grass and fodder for the coming winter. The grass is then sun-dried called is hay and stored in the open in the form of grass-hay hill.
In winter , women knit and cook and clean and care for the children. Pahari women Pluster with clay some colour-washing their houses , kitchens before few days of any Festival particularly Eid and Dewali and it was very tough in kacha house where women have to bring clay then mix with water and make the clay paste to wash the walls and roof .
The Pahari women workload is increasing because of the acute socio economic conditions ,low producing lands ,high male rural-to-urban migration for education,employment, labour ,adding the income to their agriculture and jobs.
The unfortunate part ofthe adjacent mountains are forested and home to monkeys ,lemurs , wild boar and bear ,porcupine,and other wild animals that damage the majority of agriculture produce and women have to watch day and night the fields during ripening and cutting season and also fall short of grains Due to working during rainy season ,snow ,acute winter ,toasting heat women suffer with cold and cough, fungal infection ,viral infection pain in body headaches, fever ,stomachaches etc while working during snow ,rain ,cold weather till they finish their quota of work for the day.
Bending over for work is an integral part of the women’s lives. Agricultural work requires them to stay bent. When they go into the forest to collect fodder for cattle, they return with loads that push them down to almost 90 degrees. Sometimes, these women carry a big weight which hangs from their head and down their back.
In some case they keep urgent medicines easily usable in their pockets or bins like paracetamol, Analgesic etc and in extreme cases visit the nearest medical facility but unfortunately their nutritional habits are very bad and usually prone to different diseases that's why the it is called that hard labour is the identity of pahari women .
(Pahari Nabeel)
