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Snowfall leaves Pashmina goats fodderless

SRINAGAR: Nearly one lakh goats whose wool is used to make Kashmir’s famed Pashmina shawls are among 1.50 animals facing death in the Ladakh region on the India-China border due to heavy snowfall. The authorities are making efforts to airdrop the fodder for them as a huge area is cut off from the rest of the world.

These pastures, according to reports from Leh, are spread over 22,000 square kilometres and about 1.50 animals, most of them rare goats, are stuck in the area.

As the roads are blocked, the nomads are facing severe shortage of fodder and nearly one lakh Pashmina goats are at a grave risk.

Tsering Dorjey, Chief Executive Councillor of the Leh Autonomous Hill Development Council, told The Hindu over phone that the situation on this account was grim.

Mr Dorjey said that the stocks of fodder which had been sent to the area have already been exhausted. Now we have sought the helicopter services from the Air Force and they have agreed to do that, he said.

“But the weather warning has been extended for two more days and air dropping of fodder is possible only after two days” he said.

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