Himachal Pradesh has launched a Rs 300 crore scheme to empower pastoral communities.
Under this, the government relaxed grazing restrictions and announced digital identity cards for shepherds
This initiative aims to support over 40,000 families, enhance pastoral rights and stabilise the wool economy.
The Himachal Pradesh (HP) government announced a Rs 300 crore Pastoralists Empowerment in Himalayan Ecosystems for Livelihood (PEHEL) scheme in its latest budget for the financial year 2026-27, providing a boost to the community’s financial security.
The initiative targets over 40,000 families belonging to Gaddi, Gujjar, Kinnaura and other pastoral groups, commonly known as ‘Puhals’, who have historically depended on seasonal migration and sustained their livelihoods through livestock rearing. These communities also act as informal sentinels along some of India’s most difficult border terrains, contributing to vigilance in remote Himalayan regions.
A key feature of the PEHEL scheme is the introduction of digital identity cards for shepherds that'll serve as a single document through which shepherds will get government benefits. It will also carry a record of the holder’s livestock, HP chief minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu, who also holds the finance portfolio, said in his budget speech.
The government has also reviewed long-standing grazing restrictions that have affected pastoral mobility. Grazing permits for sheep and goat rearers have effectively remained suspended since 1970, creating persistent challenges for Puhals during seasonal migration. In the latest budget, Sukhu said the state is considering relaxing limits on livestock numbers and grazing areas that have been in place for decades.
To streamline administration, the government plans to develop a dedicated digital portal carrying comprehensive data on shepherds, including livestock details and migration patterns. Traditional migration routes, water sources and night halt locations will be secured and geo-tagged.
The announcement also comes against the backdrop of United Nations declaring 2026 as the International Year of Rangelands and Pastoralists, lending significance to the state’s focus on pastoral livelihoods and ecosystems.
Experts said the scheme signals a shift in how pastoralism is treated within state policy. "The announcement marks a departure from the historical neglect of these communities," said Aniruddh Sheth from the Centre for Pastoralism.
“While work was happening on pastoralism, it has never been part of the main agenda for governments. This is the first time there is something specific to pastoralists and their livestock, and it has gone through a state mechanism of branding with the scheme name PEHEL,” he said.
This policy push builds on earlier steps taken by the state to formally recognise pastoralist rights. In January 2025, the Himachal Pradesh Forest Department issued a landmark notification identifying traditional pastoral routes and halting sites across the state, directing forest field officers to avoid tree planting in these areas under afforestation programmes.
The move marked the first official recognition of pastoralist communities’ rights over grazing lands, addressing long-standing concerns that afforestation drives were disrupting seasonal migration and restricting access to grazing lands. A total of 1,637 locations, mapped with latitude and longitude coordinates, were identified as key passageways and halting points for shepherds, with forest officials instructed to keep these areas free from plantation activities.
“With these policies, there is a larger recognition that this is an important sector, and it marks a big departure from historical ignorance or negligence,” Sheth said, adding that the allocation, scale and design of the scheme indicate longer-term policy intent rather than a short-term intervention.
“The fact that they want to take up long-term monitoring systems is significant. We don’t have a lot of historical data on pastoralism, so this could help build a stronger evidence base over time,” he said.
The government also plans to extend life insurance coverage to pastoralists, addressing the occupational risks associated with transhumant lifestyles and seasonal journeys undertaken by pastoralist families. “They will also be provided life insurance, so that in their risky lives they may have a protective shield,” Sukhu said.
The government also announced a provision of Rs 2 crore to address long-standing challenges in the wool economy. With sheep rearers in the state often struggling to secure fair prices due to the absence of a scientific system for shearing, cleaning, testing, grading and packaging of wool, the proposed allocation will support the creation of such infrastructure in collaboration with non-governmental organisations and farmer producer organisations.
In addition, the state has introduced a support price of Rs 100 per kilogram for wool under a market stabilisation scheme. If market rates fall below this threshold, the government will compensate shepherds for the difference through direct benefit transfer, with the aim of stabilising incomes in the sector.