Climate activist Sonam Wangchuk and Leh Apex Body (LAB) decided to call off the Pashmina border march aimed at highlighting the plight of the Changpa nomadic tribes.
About Changpa Tribe:
The Changpa, or Champa, are semi-nomadic people found mainly in the Changtang plateau of southeastern Ladakh. They share linguistic and cultural affinities with Tibetans.
All Changpa families profess Tibetan Buddhism as their religion. They are high-altitude pastoralists, raising mainly yaks and goats.
They can be identified by their conical yak-skin tents called reboo.
Each reboo invariably accommodates the family deity, and a picture of their spiritual head, in most cases, the Dalai Lama.
Semi-nomadic Lifestyle:
The Changpa who live nomadic lives are known as Phalpa, while those who have settled down in fixed locations are called Fangpa.
For many Changpas, rearing of animals and consuming and selling their produce (milk and its products, hair, and meat) is the only means of livelihood.
They rear the highly pedigreed and prized Changra goats (Capra Hircus) that yield the rare Pashmina (Cashmere) fibre. It is the finest fibre of all goat hair.
Their Buddhist belief does not allow them to kill animals for meat. It is only when animals die a natural death that the carcasses can be used for meat and hide, which the Changpas use to line their huts and make garments.
In 1989, the Changpa were granted official status in India as a scheduled tribe.
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