| Terai | |
|---|---|
 Aerial view of Terai plains near Biratnagar, Nepal | |
| Ecology | |
| Realm | Indomalayan realm |
| Animals | gharial,mugger crocodile,king cobra |
| Bird species | Bengal florican,lesser adjutant,swamp francolin,white-rumped vulture,Oriental darter,sarus crane |
| Mammal species | Indian rhinoceros,Asian elephant,gaur,blackbuck,tiger,leopard,jungle cat,fishing cat,leopard cat,smooth-coated otter,large Indian civet,Asian palm civet,small Indian civet,hispid hare |
| Geography | |
| Countries | Nepal, India |
| Elevation | 67–300 m (220–984 ft) |
| Rivers | Sharda River,Karnali River,Gandaki River,Koshi River |
| Climate type | tropical savanna climate |
| Soil types | alluvial |
| Conservation | |
| Global 200 | Terai-Duar savanna and grasslands |
TheTerai orTarai is a lowland region in parts of southernNepal and northernIndia that lies to the south of the outer foothills of theHimalayas, theSivalik Hills and north of theIndo-Gangetic Plain. This lowland belt is characterised by tallgrasslands, scrubsavannah,salforests and clay richswamps. InNorth India, the Terai spreads from theYamuna River eastward acrossHaryana,Uttarakhand,Uttar Pradesh,Bihar andWest Bengal. The Terai is part of theTerai-Duar savanna and grasslandsecoregion.[1]Nepal's Terai stretches over 33,998.8 km2 (13,127.0 sq mi), about 23.1% of Nepal's land area, and lies at an elevation of between 67 and 300 m (220 and 984 ft). The region comprises more than 50wetlands. North of the Terai rises theBhabar, a narrow but continuous belt of forest about 8–12 km (5.0–7.5 mi) wide.[2]
TheUrdu wordترائی tarāʼī means "lands lying at the foot of a watershed" or "on the banks of a river; low ground flooded with water, valley, basin, marshy ground, marsh, swamp; meadow".[3] InHindi, the region is calledतराई 'tarāī' meaning "foot-hill".[4] InNepali, the region is calledतराइ 'tarāi' meaning "the low-lying land, plain" and especially "the low-lying land at the foot of the Himālayas".[5][6] It has been described as "low, marshy ground".[7]
The Terai is crossed by the large perennial Himalayan rivers Yamuna, Ganges,Sarda,Karnali,Narayani andKosi that have each builtalluvial fans covering thousands of square kilometres below their exits from the hills. Medium rivers such as theRapti rise in theMahabharat Range. The geological structure of the region consists of old and newalluvium, both of which constitute alluvial deposits of mainly sand,clay,silt, gravels and coarse fragments. The new alluvium is renewed every year by fresh deposits brought down by active streams, which engage themselves influvial action. Old alluvium is found rather away from river courses, especially on uplands of the plain wheresilting is a rare phenomenon.[8]
A large number of small and usually seasonal rivers flow through the Terai, most of which originate in the Sivalik Hills. The soil in the Terai is alluvial and fine to medium textured. Forest cover in the Terai and hill areas has decreased at an annual rate of 1.3% between 1978 and 1979, and 2.3% between 1990 and 1991.[2]With deforestation and cultivation increasing, a permeable mixture of gravel, boulders and sand evolves, which leads to a sinkingwater table. But where layers consist of clay and fine sediments, the groundwater rises to the surface and heavy sediment is washed out, thus enabling frequent and massive floods duringmonsoon, such as the2008 Bihar flood.[9]
In India, the Terai extends over the states of Haryana, Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and West Bengal. These are mostly the districts of these states that are on theIndia–Nepal border:[1]
TheInner Terai Valleys of Nepal consists of five elongated valleys located between thelower Himalayan Range andSivalik Hills.[14] From north-west to south-east these valleys are:
The Outer Terai begins south of the Sivalik Hills and extends to theIndo-Gangetic Plain. In theFar-Western Region, Nepal, it comprises theKanchanpur and Kailali Districts; in theMid-Western Region, Nepal, Bardiya andBanke Districts. Further east, the Outer Terai comprises theKapilvastu,Rupandehi,Nawalparasi,Parsa,Bara,Rautahat,Sarlahi,Mahottari,Dhanusa, Siraha, Saptari,Sunsari,Morang andJhapa Districts.[15]
Several protected areas were established in the Terai since the late 1950s:
Based on theKöppen–Geiger climate classification system, the Nepal Terai experiences a dry-winterhumid subtropical climate (Cwa) with pleasant to warm winters and sweltering summers, a mean annual temperature of 20–28 °C (68–82 °F), and a mean annual rainfall of 1,600–1,800 mm (63–71 in) in the west and 2,500–3,000 mm (98–118 in) in the east.[22]
| Biratnagar, 26°N, 87°E | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Chandigarh, 30°N, 77°E | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Tharu andDhimal people are theindigenous inhabitants of the Terai forests.[23] Several Tharu subgroups are scattered over most of the Nepal and Indian Terai.[12][24][25] They used to be semi-nomadic, practisedshifting cultivation and collected wild fruits, vegetables andmedicinal herbs.[26] They have been living in the Terai for many centuries and reputedly had an innate resistance tomalaria.[27]Dhimal reside in the eastern Nepal Terai, viz Sunsari, Morang and Jhapa Districts. In the past, they lived in the fringes of the forest and conducted a semi-nomadic life to evade outbreaks of diseases. Today, they are subsistence farmers.[23]
TheBhoksa people are indigenous to the western Terai in the IndianKumaon division.[11]
Maithils inhabit the Indian Terai in Bihar and the eastern Terai in Nepal.Bhojpuri people reside in the central and eastern Terai, andAwadhi people live in the central and western Terai.Bantawa people reside foremost in two districts of the eastern Terai in Nepal.[28]
Following the malaria eradication program usingDDT in the 1960s, a large and heterogeneous non-Tharu population settled in the Nepal Terai.[27]Pahari people from the mid-hills includingBahun,Chhetri andNewar moved to the plains in search of arable land. In the rural parts of the Nepal Terai, distribution and value of land determine economic hierarchy to a large extent. Highcaste migrants from the hills and traditional Tharu landlords who own agriculturally productive land constitute the upper level of the economic hierarchy. The poor are the landless or near landless TeraiDalits, including theMusahar,Chamar andMallaah.[29] SeveralChepang people also live in Nepal's central and eastern Terai districts.[30][31]As of June 2011, the human population in the Nepal Terai totalled 13,318,705 people in 2,527,558 households comprising more than 120 different ethnic groups andcastes such asBadi,Chamling,Ghale,Kumal,Limbu,Magar,Muslim,Rajbanshi,Teli,Thakuri,Yadav andMajhi speaking people.[32]
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TheMuslim invasion of northern India during the 14th century forced Hindu and Buddhist people to seek refuge from religious persecution.Rajput nobles and their entourage migrated to the Himalayan foothills and gained control over the region fromKashmir to the eastern Terai during the following three centuries.[33]
By the 16th century, the rulers ofPalpa andMakwanpur controlled the mid-western Terai and extended this control to the eastern Terai by the 17th century.[34] They controlled the area of today's districts ofSaptari, Siraha,Dhanusa, Mahottari and Sarlahi.[35] The rulers of Makwanpur controlled the central Terai region of present-day Nepal, and the rulers of Vijayapur controlled today's Sunsari, Morang and Jhapa Districts.[36] TheShah dynasty conquered the eastern Nepal Terai in the 1770s.[37] They also conquered land in the eastern Terai that belonged to theKingdom of Sikkim.[38]TheTulsipur State, in the Dang Valley of Nepal's western Terai, was also an independent kingdom until it was conquered in 1785 byBahadur Shah of Nepal during theunification of Nepal.[39] Until the mid 18th century, the Nepal Terai was divided into several smaller kingdoms, and the forests and wild places were, largely, left undisturbed.[40] Since the late 18th century, however, the Shah rulers encouraged Indians to settle in the Terai, and supported famine-stricken Bihari farmers in efforts to convert to a more productive agricultural lifestyle in the eastern Nepal Terai.[41]From at least 1786 onward, they appointed government officers in the eastern Terai districts of Parsa, Bara, Rautahat, Mahottari, Saptari and Morang to levy taxes, collect revenues and maintain civil order, as well as to hunt wild game, includingIndian elephants andIndian rhinoceros, mostly for their ivory.[42][43] At the end of the 18th century, between 200 and 300 elephants were caught annually, usingsnares or nooses.[44]
The far-western and mid-western regions of the Nepal Terai (called 'Naya Muluk', or ‘new country’) lay on the northern periphery of theAwadh dynasty. After Nepal lost theAnglo–Nepalese War of 1816, theBritish annexed these regions of the Terai when theSugauli Treaty was ratified; as a reward for Nepal's military aid in theIndian Rebellion of 1857, they returned some of this region in 1860, namely today's districts of Kanchanpur, Kailali, Banke and Bardiya.[15]To promote economic development of the Nepal Terai, people from the hills were invited to settle in the region. Since only a few moved to the Terai, Indian people were further encouraged to settle.[45] Immigration of Indian people increased between 1846 and 1950.[41] They settled in the eastern Nepal Terai, living in close proximity with native Terai peoples.[15]
The Indian Terai remained largely uninhabited until the end of the 19th century, as it was arduous and dangerous to penetrate the densemarsh- andmalaria-filledjungle with its predators.[46]Dacoit gangs retreated to the Terai jungles, and the area was considered lawless and wild by the British, who sought control of the region's valuable timber reserves.[47] The region was densely forested with stands of foremostSal.[15]
Heavy logging began in the 1920s. Extracted timber was exported to India to collect revenues. Cleared areas were subsequently used for agriculture.[40]But still, the Terai jungles were teaming with wildlife.[48]
Inner Terai valleys historically were agriculturally productive but extremely malarial. Some parts were left forested by official decree during theRana dynasty as a defensive perimeter calledChar Kose Jhadi, meaning 'four kos forest'; one kos equals about 3 km (1.9 mi). A British observer noted, "Plainsmen and paharis generally die if they sleep in the Terai before November 1 or after June 1." British travelers to Kathmandu went as fast as possible from the border atRaxaul to reach the hills before nightfall.[15]
Malaria was eradicated usingDDT in the mid-1950s, at the unfortunate expense of future generations of birds, especially vultures, which were especially sensitive to the chemical. Subsequently, people from the hills migrated to the Terai.[49] About 16,000Tibetan refugees settled in the Nepal Terai in 1959–1960, followed by refugees of Nepali origin fromBurma in 1964, fromNagaland andMizoram in the late 1960s, and about 10,000Bihari Muslims from Bangladesh in the 1970s.[50]Timber export continued until 1969. In 1970,King Mahendra granted land to loyal ex-army personnel in the districts of Jhapa, Sunsari, Rupandehi and Banke Districts, where seven colonies were developed for resettling about 7,000 people. They acquired property rights over uncultivated forest and 'waste' land, thus accelerating the deforestation process in the Terai.[49]Between 1961 and 1991, the annual population growth in the Terai was higher than the national average, which indicates that migration from abroad occurred at a large scale. Deforestation continued, and forest products from state-owned forest were partly smuggled to India.Community forestry was introduced in 1995.[51]Since the 1990s, migration from the Terai to urban centres is increasing and causing sociocultural changes in the region.[52]
Since the early 1950s, several political parties advocated forautonomy and independence of the Nepal Terai, such as theNepal Terai Congress andJanatantrik Terai Mukti Morcha.[53][54]Several armed groups were formed, which pursued this aim using violent means.[55]In 2013, more than 24 Madheshi political parties were registered for theConstituent Assembly of Nepal election.[56]
The most significant border dispute of the Indo-Nepal boundary in the Terai region is theSusta area. In the Susta region, 14,500 hectares of land is under dispute but recent development has manage to discuss it bilaterally.[57][58]
After the2008 Nepalese Constituent Assembly election, Indian politicians kept on trying to secure strategic interests in the Nepal Terai, such as over hydropower energy, development projects, business and trade.[59] Thegovernment of Nepal has accused India of imposing an undeclaredblockade in 2015 but it is not clear yet, local peoples blame Nepal administration and government.[60]
Dhurmus Suntali Foundation handed over an integrated community containing 50 houses toMusahar community ofBardibas at a cost of Rs. 63 million.[61]
The Terai is the most productive region in Nepal with the majority of the country's industries. Agriculture is the basis of the economy.[62] Major crops includerice,wheat,maize,potato,peas,lentil,mustard,sugar cane,ginger,turmeric,cardamom,garlic andchili. Fruits comprisemango,lychee,guava,papaya,banana andjackfruit.[63] The Terai is also known forbeekeeping andhoney production, with about 120,000 colonies ofApis cerana.[64]
In Jhapa District,tea has been cultivated since 1960; the annual production of 2005 was estimated at 10.1 million kg.[65]
TheMahendra Highway crosses the Nepal Terai fromKankarbhitta on the eastern border in Jhapa District,Province No. 1 toMahendranagar near the western border in Kanchanpur District,Mahakali Zone. It is the only motor road spanning the country from east to west.[citation needed]
Tea cultivation was introduced in the Darjeeling Terai in 1862.[13]
Tourist attractions in the Terai include:
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