In the Southwest Asia, nomadic pastoralism evolved approximately 10,000 years ago, roughly concurrent with the development of agriculture. The adoption of the lifestyle was facilitated by the domestication of the wild yak Bos Mutus, which became a source of hardy draft power and a vital source of fibre for tents and clothing, meat and milk. In modern Ladakh, livestock still play an intrinsic and vital role in the livelihood and cultural identity for the 24,000 Ladakhi and 3,000 Ngari Tibetan refugees who pursue a nomadic or semi nomadic existence in the Changthang. The recent disaster has brought into sharp focus just how dependent the nomads are on their livestock.

Because of the lack of any other source of income or food supply, the nomads depend for their very survival on their animals. The nomadic diet is comprised predominantly of milk , butter, cheese and meat. Today, this is derived almost exclusively from sheep and goat that in normal times comprise around 80% of the total domesticated animal population. Dairy production from these animals is generally used by individual families and does not provide an external source of income. The production of meat and fibre such as wool, Pashmina and mohair is therefore the crucial element in the nomadic economy and forms the basis of economic interaction with external communities and traders. This production was traditionally bartered for consumables such as rice, matches and salt.

The Changthang has considerable livestock resources. The total asset value of the livestock in district Leh was estimated around Rs. 256 million before the disaster of last winter. The Changthang Pasture Area is the Pashmina belt of the Ladakhi region, located in the northern and eastern part of Leh district. Pashmina and meat are the most important source of income for the nomads of this region. In Tibetan nomadic communities, the sale of animals for meat is contrary to their religious beliefs, and therefore plays a less significant role in family income. Sheep and yak wool is also sold or bartered, but Pashmina is the most valuable commodity produced by the nomads.

Despite its high quality and great value, the nomads only receive a fraction of its true market value. Due to an absence of regulation and an increasing dependence on external goods, traders of Pashmina, meat and wool are in a position to establish exploitative terms on bartered transactions. An average nomad generally receives around 50% of the Indian market price for his produce, and in turn pays 130-150% above the market rate for groceries. This traps many nomads in a vicious cycle of debt, permitting no savings or progress for the present generation of nomads and serves to discourage future generations from adopting the traditional ways of life. The traditional systems of barter have also been eroded by the introduction of government distribution of food and fuel rations, which are available for cash. Although providing essential staples at subsidized prices, this has affected age-old trading patterns and has opened the nomadic households to the invasion of a hitherto unknown monetised economy. This economy is of course influenced by factor extraneous to the Changthang, over which the nomads have no control and which they are powerless to affect. As an example, the cash value of Pashmina fell by 50% in 1996 and 1997 due to glut of Chinese Pashmina on the international market. In the same year the price of rations in the Changthang was increased. These pressures placed the nomads at a huge disadvantage, particularly those with little access to cash economy. Such events have served to erode the traditional self-dependency of local communities, increasing insecurity.

There can be no resistance to the gradual invasion of the monetised economy but measures can be taken to ameliorate its worst effects and even to take advantage of it. Such measures need to be a careful mixture of regulation and innovation. For example, there is a clear need for better institutional regulation of trade. There is also a need to achieve a situation in which the nomads gain the benefits of the true value of their products. This might be done by establishing better links between producers and consumers, perhaps through the establishment of independent, accountable co-operative societies, and by establishing Fair Trade links with international producers of cashmere. In addition, the introduction of product processing technologies into Ladakh will allow the nomads to obtain better returns since they will be able to access the benefits of local production of processed products rather than remain prey to the insecure and exploitative pricing of raw, unprocessed wool and Pashmina.

Pashmina Weavers is currently working with local producers to develop solution to these problems to help preserve the unique lifestyle of the Changthang nomads by adopting Fair Trade practices. The promoters of Pashmina Weavers have a long history of trade relation with these nomads. In fact they had business relation and access upto Rudok ( Central Tibet ) before Tibet was taken over by Chinese regime. The nomadic herdsmen of Tibet now live in India as refugees who had once thousands of sheep and Pashmina goat flocks. Some of them are still in touch with some of the promoters. This is one of the reason which has lead the formation of Pashmina Weavers with a vision to create sustainable lifestyle, which will enable them to tackle the modern monitised economy without compromising on their ethnic moorings.