This paper deals with Rajbanshi Indigenous Knowledge for ecological resource management.
Paper long abstract:
Rajbanshi social fold of Sub-Himalayan West Bengal and its northern plains and watersheds incorporates various castes, tribes and communities. They are mostly agriculturalists and a few attached with forestry to collect minor resources.
Rajbanshis are good with ecological resource management. Their management of agricultural biodiversity, sacred groves, water bodies, watersheds and marshlands are too good. They rear cattle and poultry. Their knowledge base can be a target for microfinance. They also know about forest resource, agro-forestry, and social forestry. They in this way mitigate the demands of wood, fuel, herbal remedy and wooden plough and other implements. They can protect local seeds as well as indigenous rice, vegetable and bamboo varieties. Women play the most important role. They have developed complex agrarian systems that they provide religious assistance and make integral part of folk life.
They maintain their structures on resource management (or substructure) assisted by the superstructure.