Nomads in Pakistan

[ghazi52]

Nomads: Life on the move

Living in the hustle and bustle of cities and towns can be pretty difficult, if not impossible, to imagine that there are still people here in Pakistan who live life on the move with — during their twice yearly migrations — a different camp site out under the stars each and every night. This is how Gujjar nomads still live.


These colourful nomadic herders live in harmony with the environment and their huge flocks of sheep and goats on which their very existence depends. Majority of them undertake their spring and autumn migrations on foot, covering hundreds of kilometres in a matter of weeks but some, presumably better off tribes, get to ride the gaily caparisoned ponies and mules they also breed as another source of income.

These nomads, anthropologists think, evolved from the ancient Turkic tribes of Central Asia and are known throughout the Himalayan, Karakorum and Hindu Kush regions. Their life revolves around the well-being of their animals which they graze in the plains during the cool of winter, walking them back up into the high mountains for the summer season when weather in the plains is too hot for them to endure.

These Gujjar tribes have their own customs, culture and language, although they also speak the language of their traditional wintering places too. So those spending the winter in Punjab speak Punjabi as a second language as this is necessary for them to conduct business plus, as some of them are appointed as agricultural labourers, it is a must that they can converse with their employers in order to understand the jobs to be done.

Surprisingly enough, these people rarely eat meat as they consider their animals far too valuable to kill. Their diet largely consists of milk, cheese, yoghurt, edible wild plants which they gather from their surroundings while keeping in mind never to harvest too much from one place as this would mean that there may not be a crop the next time they are passing through. They also eat lots of roti — buying sacks of flour from the income they make by selling animals now and then, and they wash everything down with endless cups of tea, tasting of smoke from the campfires over which they cook.

Gujjar ladies are in the habit of plaiting their hair in hundreds of tiny plaits from which they hang a variety of highly decorative hair ornaments. When in camp, they also spend hours on end embroidering their clothes with traditional designs, echoing these intricate patterns on the cushions, blankets and mats with which they furnish their tents and also on the bridles, saddle cloths and ornaments used on their ponies and mules which are a colourful site to see as, fully loaded with goods, they traverse the roads from one place to another.

During the spring and autumn migrations it is customary for young children to ride on top of baggage piled on ponies and mules as their short legs cannot keep the gruelling pace set by their elders.

Young goats and sheep, much prized possessions, are also securely fastened on top of baggage ponies/mules as they couldn’t keep up either and are carefully unloaded to be reunited with their mothers when the caravan stops to make camp for the night.

Gujjar children rarely, if ever, get the chance to go to school which puts them at a great disadvantage later in life if they decide to settle permanently in one place as, being uneducated, work opportunities are limited. These days though, some of the children do manage to spend a few weeks in school during winter in the plains but, on the whole, most prefer tending their family herds in the great outdoors which is what they are used to doing.

In days gone by, these migratory tribes along with other nomadic peoples such as Kuchis with their camel caravans, were able to migrate between Pakistan, Afghanistan, Central Asia, China, Tibet, Kashmir and India, but their movements were severely restricted by wars, international boundary regulations and also by the partition of India when Pakistan came into being.There are now far less nomadic people of this nature than there used to be, their numbers have particularly decreased over the past 60 years or so, yet, even so, they are still counted in the thousands although no one really knows exactly how many there really are.

While educated people all over the world talk about saving the environment and having respect for nature, nomadic tribes have always practised such things as they are fully aware that if they misuse or exploit their natural surroundings they will suffer for it sooner or later.

Each particular tribe sticks to its own ancestral route of migration; say for example, summering in a particular valley in Chitral and wintering near a certain village in the plains of Punjab, with specified nightly camping grounds along the very long route to and fro. Others summer in the alpine valleys of Azad Kashmir or in the spectacular hidden mountain valleys of remote Alai in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, but all winter down in the relative warmth of the plains, beginning their migrations as soon as temperatures begin to drop and well before the advent of the first snow fall which would trap them and their livestock in the mountains for the winter.

Just how many more years the nomadic way of life will be able to survive is highly questionable as the modern way of living, so very different from theirs, is managing to adversely affect nomadic movements. New roads and motorways now cut through traditional travelling routes, land on which they have always camped is not always open to them anymore and finding new camping grounds — where the huge herds of animals can graze plus have access to water — is increasingly difficult and even their winter camping grounds are disappearing under construction sites.

The day nomadic people are forced to stop their traditional migrations will be a very sad one indeed. People who are not used to living in one place all the time will find it extremely difficult to settle down and neither would they then be able to retain the herds on which their survival depends as they would not be able to find enough suitable land on which to graze them.

For now at least, they are able to live alongside the natural world in a far more sustainable manner than you or I and could, most certainly, teach us all a thing or two.

A family of nomads in Dara Zinda, Frontier Region Dera Ismail Khan.

 

[ghazi52]

.

One of few tea stalls of the community.

A grocery stall, these small business are run by the gypsy community, no outsiders are welcomed here.

Gulam Qasim’s little pupil, fluent in Urdu and English alphabets.

Ashraf Adil started this class about two years ago on his own. He even got the books from his own salary.

Occupations of Khana Badosh (Gypsies) of Pakistan, just have a glance below, no difference between our people and across the border as for as the nomads are concerned.

Qalandar Begging,
Behrupia, Singing and Dancing
Changharr Garbage Collectors / Beggars
Ouddh Labor
Musali Labor / Beggars
Chingarr Bangle Sellers
Bhatu Begging
Jogy Snake Charmer, Nem-Hakeem and/or Begging
Nut Acrobats
Kenghar Making Mud Toys
Bazigar Acrobats
Marasi Singing / Dancing / Begging
Lalli Marasi Hunting / Begging
Koray Begging
Gurajmar Begging
Gugray Cane-Maker / Begging
Churi Ghar Bangle Makers & Sellers
Balouch Keeping Cattles

On the way to work, monkey jugglers Riaz and Arshad have to walk all day to collect Rs 400-500.

 

[ghazi52]

GUJJARS – THE GYPSIES OF THE HIMALAYAS

It is really a feast for the eyes to see the flocks of cattle-sheep, goats, cows and buffaloes trotting by the roadside escorted by some ferocious dogs to the tune of the whistles of their masters. Masters are elegantly clad with beautifully embroidered garments. These are the gypsies of the Himalayas, popularly known as Gujjars who are always on the move.

Several books on the cultural heritage of Gujjars have been published so far but their place of origin is not established yet. Most of the historians stress upon the fact that they came from the Middle Asia and reached India in search of green pastures and meadows. Some of the researchers believe them to be a section of the valiant clan of the Huns while others claim them to be true Aryans who established their colonies in the northern part of this country spreading up to the plains of Ganges. Gujjars have been mentioned in several epics and in a number of classical books with myriad noun forms-Gujjar, Gujar, Goojar, Goojjar, etc. In Harshcharita by Bhan Bhat, there is a reference that during the reign of Prabhakar Vardhan there were some powerful domains of Gujjars. We find mention of these Gujjars in the diaries of foreign travellers that there were several powerful kings of Gujjars who used to assist the more powerful kingdoms and thus were the deciding factors in tilting the power from one kingdom to another.


There are still some Gujjar settlements in several middle east countries which point to the fact that once they were settled there and established their kingdoms. Several such families are still there in the ravines and at the base of Hindukush which speak Gojary language similar to that of the language spoken by the Gujjars of this part of the world. Gujjars reside in several cities and the localities of Attock, Peshawar , Jhelam, Rawal Pindi, Gujranwala, Sialkot, Lahore, etc. in Pakistan.

In addition to their flock of sheep and goats they carry with them ponies and horses on the backs of which household goods are kept. They include tents, utensils, clothes of daily use and other articles of use in the travel. In fact, all their assets are carried on the horsebacks. Wherever there is a place to spend night they settle down and form a dera with open tents to accommodate the family members. They may stay there for more than a day provided there is enough greenery for their flock.

Social Milieu
These nomads are hardworking people. The male members of the clan are tall having broad shoulders with cute cuts. They are having open milky visage, however, a few of them are dark in colour too. The elders are bearded. They wear long shirts and salwars of dark colours. Jackets of black or dark colour are always in use but pattu coat is in vogue during winter only. They use white turban in the style of Turks. Big leather shoes are in vogue which are nailed heavily at the soles. The females are thin and tall. Their attire is almost similar to that of their male counterparts. They are very fond of braiding their hair. Numerous small braids divergently appear from the upper part of the forehead and convergently slide down to a single braid of hair at the back. They usually wear a dark coloured cap on their head covering the turning point of the braids. They carry their younger kids on their back in cloth cradles fastened around their backs. Sometimes young lambs are also cradled. Newly born lambs are always carried on the backs to lure the sheep mothers. The free hands are always busy

Women folk at once start making the dera look like a house. Kitchen is made in the open unless there is rain when they try to get the shelter under the protruding rock or in a natural cave they get on their way. The hearth for cooking the meals is always in open, arranged temporarily with stones; twigs of wood are used to lit fire. They are fond of maize bread which is prepared from the flour made out of powdering the maize grains. Vegetables especially the green leaves of various herbs, potatoes and sometimes dal and curry are also used with a bit of chillies and raw onion. They are also fond of mutton. Ghee and shakkar are their best delicacies. While the ladies prepare the food, menfolk enjoy on hukah or gossip near the hearth to get the warmth during winter season. They lit torches during the night to shun away the wild animals. The next morning they pack their luggage on the backs of horses and ponies and start for the next halt. The process goes on until they reach the green pastures where they stay for pretty long time until they feel that their flock has taken enough. The rituals and other celebrations are very simple. Almost every celebration starts with the distribution of ghee and shakkar among the poor and the kith and kin’s followed by the chanting of the folk songs. At the time of new births and also during marriage ceremonies hilarious folk songs are chanted. They are generally the love epics popularly known as Masnavis. Thus Masnavis like Saifal Malook, Heer Ranja, Laila Majnu, etc. are recited accompanied by folk music instruments like bag pipe, algoja, mattian, flute and drums.

 

[ghazi52]

Marriages are very simple. They are ceremonious without any vanity or show. Marriage procession comprises of horse riders. After the ceremony is over the bride is brought on the back of a horse. Marriage parties are received with ghee and shakkar distributed among all the persons accompanying the barat. They are given a feast of delicious food including sweets, rice with several types of curries, mutton and fruits. Generally the marriages are arranged by the family members but sometimes there may be mutually agreed marriages between the bride and the bridegroom. Occasionally, there may be a number of young lads opting for a most beautiful girl of the clan. When there is a competition, the cattle’s are offered in lieu to the parents of the girl. The bidder giving the highest bid wins the battle, of course the will of the ‘girl is always sought by the mother of the girl confidentially. Once it so happened that a young Bakarwal gave away his whole herd of animals only to get the hand of a beautiful damsel. Other members of the community offered him some animals in gift and to some extent he was compensated.

Marriages are conducted by the priests of the mosques generally in Niquah style. Both the sides are asked about their consent followed by the recitation of Ayats from Quran Sharif. The Bakarwals are the scholars of nature. They know the seasonal flowering, grasses and medicinal herbs of various kinds. They are the doctors of their herd and apply the medicinal herbs to the cattle’s whenever they are sick. Some of the Bakarwals collect medicinal herbs during their travels which are sold in the market at handsome price. Milk, curd, butter, ghee, etc are the ingredients sold by these nomads to make their both ends meet. They also sell raw wool which is cut once in a year in case of ordinary sheep but twice in case of Australian breed which they rear now. The cutting of wool generally takes place in the summer months. They are rich persons having thousands of animals in their herd.

Now-a-days they have opened their accounts in the banks also and a few of the rich parties possess lockers too. Since they are always on the move their children cannot study in traditional schools. Considering the fact J&K Govt. has introduced the process of mobile schools. Teachers especially Gujjars and Bakarwals are arranged to move along with the caravan of herds. They are the mobile schools. Teachers selected for these schools are the educated Gujjars and Bakarwals.

Democratic Set-up

Bakarwals always move in groups. A single kabila may consist of several families together. Each family used to have a head of the family and all of these heads combine together to elect their leader. Generally it is unanimously decided and the most active one or the most powerful and rich is elected to perform the duties of a leader. This headman of the herds is popularly known as Mukadam. These Mukadams were, once upon a time, the most powerful persons who used to decide the fates of the feudal lords. Even now they play an important role in deciding the trend in the general elections in the area. All the quarrels of the families are settled by these headmen of the clan. Even the major disputes between the clans are solved mutually among themselves. The deciding person used to be the Mukadam whose verdict is supposed to be final. Bakarwals seldom go to courts for getting justice. It is only when they are forced that they knock the doors of the courts.

Generally these disputes are extra-territorial, i.e. they do not concern with the clans only but the state is also involved. Then the Mukadams are helpless and they have no option but to go to courts for the cause of justice. Generally these cases are against the forest department and revenue department. Such disputes arise when they are not allowed to graze their cattles in a particular locality. These people are fed up with these legalities as they are so prolonged that it becomes rather impossible to have justice in a few sittings. So they try to avoid such proceedings.

 

[ghazi52]

Meet the Gypsies ( Nomad )!

For thousands of years the Gypsies have had the same way of life. Gypsy tribes belonging to various districts of southern Punjab. They are locally called ‘Khana Badosh’ Pakhiwas, Changar, Ghonpar Patti, etc’. The nomads are socially and politically marginalized and largely alienated, deprived of the most basic rights. They are looked down upon by people in the city.

From social rights to earning opportunities, nomad families grapple with various problems. Illiteracy and increasing population is a major issue, with each of the families having at least 10 children.

Every one or two years, communities of Gypsies migrate from one location to another depending upon the availability of work, livelihoods, and places to set up their huts. They choose places which are near the banks of rivers or outside urban localities. Most live around major cities like Lahore in Pakistan’s Punjab province.

As stated above, the Gypsies keep moving from one place to another because they have no proper homes, that’s why they are called Khana Badosh, Ghonpar Patti (house on your shoulders). They usually live in temporary huts made with cloth, straw and bamboo (wooden pillars support the structure of the cloth made hut). Thus, they make these handmade temporary huts which consist of 25-50 in each colony and live in small or large groups where they have to live according to their norms and principals. They bear the hardships of cold winters and very hot summers in these huts and also strong winds, thunder storms, and rainy seasons as well. Normally, a family consists of a man and wife and their 5 to 10 children. Children are married at an early age (12-15 years). Because of early age marriage the number of children increases and the family is unable to fulfill their basic needs, and the children are always at risk of dying at an early age or being disabled.

Although some of these families are daily wage labourers, most of them rely on begging as their main source of income. Men are the head of the family and hold all the rights. Most of them are drug addicts and live idle lives. Women and children get up early in the morning and go around and beg door to door or work as child labor, hotel, tea stalls and mint fields etc.

Especially, the women & children lead very miserable lives because they are deprived of basic needs like food, clean drinking water, medication, a proper hygienic environment, lack of education, and proper clothing. Women are very weak and because of early age marriages most of the women die during delivery time, pregnancy or premature birth cases. The high infant mortality rate is staggering. Hardly any gypsy women have access to formal medicines or maternity facilities. Primary health facilities are not available as they live outside of the cities and in cases of emergency lots of problems are created thus this ratio is going higher and higher. Poverty and racism is the reason why gypsy ( nomad ) children can't attend school.

 

[Deidara]

Strictly speaking nomads are the people who wander with their animals. Beggars or menial workers in cities living in temporary shelters dont count as nomads.

 

[ghazi52]

 

[ghazi52]

Baluchi nomads Bolan Pass

Nomads Camped Near Dadu In Sind..

Kashmiri Gujjars (nomads)

Kohistani nomads — constantly on the move

Nomads from Kohistan travel towards the plains on Punjab on a centuries old route on foot, near Taxila.


Known in ancient times as the Pawindhas, the nomad families of Kohistan and the Hazara division have kept alive the centuries-old tradition of migration from the mountains to the plains, and vice versa.

These Pawindhas clans live in makeshift dwellings, own few possessions and speak their own rustic dialect. They migrate during each season, heading from Kohistan in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa carrying household items and accompanied by hoards of animals, such as goats, sheep, mules and horses, down the Silk Road to the plains of Punjab in the winter, and back to the mountains in the summer.

Few people across the country are aware that there are still tribes that live life on the move, camping out under the stars each night during their two annual migrations, the way the Gujjar or Pawindhas clan does.

Their main source of income is their livestock, which travels with them and serves as transport for the elderly, women as they travel through the countryside, and pitch tents wherever they stop.

Hakim Khan, who has come from Balakot and is leading his family’s caravan to the south Punjab plains via the Taxila-Haripur Road, said: “We will stay [in Punjab] until the end of winter, with some of our old contacts and relatives who work on the farms.”

Their transient lifestyle is an ancient tradition, and one they have chosen.

Reshman recalled her first journey to Punjab, on the back of a horse when she was three years old. She said she has been travelling the same route since she was a child, adding that she and the rest of her tribe wonder how people could live in the same place their whole lives.

Sardar Samandar, 62, the head of another family from the Kohistan area, told Dawn their families have discarded permanent settlements for centuries, instead adopting a transient lifestyle to keep their forefathers’ culture alive.

He said his family will live on the plains of Punjab and help local farmers cultivate wheat, and remain there until wheat harvesting.

“We will get our share in the crop as well as wages and return to our native valley in mid-May, with our earnings and wheat, which we will then depend on for the remaining months.”

The nomadic herders live in harmony with the environment, and with their huge flocks of sheep and goats on which their very existence depends. It has been observed that most of clan members undertake their spring and autumn migrations on foot, covering hundreds of miles in a matter of weeks while others, presumably from better off tribes, ride brightly caparisoned ponies and mules that they breed as another source of income.

Banaras, 63, is leading his family to Dera Ghazi Khan. Pleased with his choice to carry on his ancestors’ way of life despite some shortcomings, such as a house, education for his children and health, he said: “What could be better than going to new places and leading a life free of too many obligations that permanent settlement brings.”

According to the historian and senior archaeologist Abdul Ghafoor, members of the Gujjar or Pawindhas clan can trace their history back to the ancient Turkic tribes of Central Asia, and are known throughout the Himalayan, Karakoram and Hindu Kush regions.

Mr Ghafoor said their lives revolved around the wellbeing of their animals, which they graze in the plains during the winter, and herd back up into the mountains in the summer, when the weather in the plains is too hot for them to endure.

He said the Gujjar tribes have their own customs, culture and language, but they also speak the language of their traditional wintering places. Tribes that spend the winter in Punjab speak Punjabi as a second language, so they can conduct business or work as agriculture labourers during their time on the plains. During spring and autumn migrations, it is customary for young children to ride atop their baggage, piled on ponies and mules, as their short legs cannot keep up with the gruelling space set by their elders.

“I am never tired, despite travelling over 70 kilometres on foot from dawn to dusk. It makes me strong, and we tour over a hundred cities every year,” said Palwasha, a young girl. Shyly covering her face, she added: “We rest at night and travel daily for almost two months from the Kohistan valley to Rahimyar Khan.”

 

[ghazi52]

PEOPLE: NO LAND TO CALL THEIR OWN
Rafiullah Mandokhail

With his herd of sheep a Kochi man moves on to find shelter

A cluster of black and white tents near the Zhob River along the Wala Akram Road in the suburb of Zhob city provides an eye-catching view. The families, residing in the tents are neither internally-displaced persons nor refugees. In fact, they are Afghan nomads known as Kochis (a derivative of the Pashto word ‘Koch’ meaning migration) and are locally called Pawanda and Kadwal — a Pakhtun tribe.

Visiting the area gives a glimpse of their daily routine. It is indeed another world — as far removed from the ‘modern’ world as one can get but for the Kochis life goes on as usual. A Kochi man can be seen sitting outside his black tent awaiting the arrival of his flock of sheep. Nearby, a young Kochi woman in a dazzling colourful dress, embellished with mirrors and sequins, is preparing tea in a blackened old kettle on a bushfire clouding the air with smoke. Next to their tent another woman is kneading dough to bake bread, while their kids are playing or running around.

Adam Khan, a 47-year-old Kochi man, owns hundreds of sheep, goats, donkeys and camels — someone whom the Kochis would consider rich. But despite belonging to a well-off family, Khan seems unhappy with his people’s way of life. “Whether it is a chilly winter or sizzling summer, we have to live in a tent,” he says.

Kochis migrate between Pakistan and Afghanistan every year, following in the footsteps of their ancestors

While life may be harsh for Kochi women, their nomadic existence means they are able to lead a more liberal lifestyle — Kochi women don’t use the veil as conservative Pakhtun woman traditionally do. The women are often busy contributing to the community — collecting water, making dairy products and cooking food. They spend their free time embroidering traditional designs on clothes and weaving rugs. The newly-wed brides can easily be spotted as they wear brightly coloured dresses which are heavily embroidered and decorated with traditional mirrors and sequins that clink as they move.

Kochi girls passing through the Zhob River along with their cattle


The Kochi people are always on the move, migrating to Pakistan in the autumn and returning to Afghanistan in the spring and follow the historical caravan routes during their semi-annual migrations. Accompanied by their herds of cattle and carrying items of daily use, they travel on foot using the same route as their ancestors did for hundreds of years from Damaan to Khurasan. The Kochis speak a rustic dialect of the Pashto language and live on the margins of main cities. According to the UN, an estimated two million Kochis make this annual migration.

During their travels, the Kochis are accompanied by fierce dogs that protect the caravans, the camps and people. These dogs are often colloquially reffered to as the Kochi breed as well. Children and the elderly, travel the thousands of kilometres on camels and donkeys. Zareen, a Kochi, says that their destination depends on weather and season, adding that “the grazing this year is better compared to previous years following heavy winter rains.”

A Kochi family sits outside their tent

The Kochi people are always on the move, migrating to Pakistan in the autumn and returning to Afghanistan in the spring and follow the historical caravan routes during their semi-annual migrations.

Given that they are herders, the Kochi’s main source of income is their livestock. All their basic needs — such as milk, cheese, yoghurt, ghee, meat and wool — come from their goats and sheep. “To obtain other basic necessities, we sell a sheep or goat in the local market,” points out Zareen.

Though they contribute immensely to the local market in terms of dairy items, meat and wool during their semi-annual migration, according to Khan, the people of nearby villages do not allow them to set camps on their grazing land though they stay everywhere temporarily.

A family collecting grass to feed their animals

“We have neither Pakistani nor Afghan nationality, and this is the major cause of our problems, as no government cares to address our problems,” says Adam Khan.

A tent perched in the mountainous area to provide shelter to cattle

Kochi women prepare food for the family

Kochi women carry dried wood branches for cooking