GOLDEN THREADS, FRAGILE ECOSYSTEMS: WHY COP30 MUST PRIORITIZE FUNDING AND HANDHOLDING FOR THE VIHI DISTRICT AND THE DYING SAFFRON FIELDS OF PAMPORE
- Nadeem Ahmad Dar
- 5d
- 5 min read
While the world is getting ready for COP30, the situation in the VIHI District (The "Vihi district" is a geographical and geological area in Kashmir, India, centered around the Guryul Ravine in Khonmoh, near Srinagar. It is geologically significant because it contains unique fossils from the Permian-Triassic extinction event ("The Great Dying") over 250 million years ago and is considered the site of the world's first recorded tsunami. This horseshoe-shaped area includes the locations of Athwajan, Pantha Chowk, Zewan, Wuyan, Khrew, Mandakpal, Shar-shali, Ladhu, and Kranchu wetland) of India—a small yet illustrative example of the Global South’s climate problems—gives a very strong message.
The dying saffron fields of Pampore, concrete with no planning being done all over, land use change, stressed forests, and changing mountain ecosystems, are the main issues of the district and the world at large when it comes to the question of biodiversity, heritage, and human resilience.
The Kashmir Observer newspaper and many other news portals recently published a report with a shocking figure of 90% decline in saffron yield this season in Pampore, the "Saffron Capital of India". This collapse of saffron is not just an economic crisis but also an existential crisis for the thousands of families whose lives depend on saffron growing. It not only threatens the very existence of the art wrapped around this plant but also causes the disappearance of the cultural heritage of the region and the ecosystem that is so delicate and thus, the very landscape of the UNESCO heritage site will no longer be there.
VIHI District: A Unity of Nature and Man Struggling to Cope
The VIHI District is one of the most ecologically and culturally rich places in India. Here the rare mix of agriculture, forests, wetlands, mountains, and tribal peoples live side by side, interacting with each other, and thereby creating both the stunning nature and the ecological frailty at the same time.
The district has:
The Pampore Saffron Landscape which is famous globally for its production of the world's best saffron and is also recognized by UNESCO as a site of cultural heritage.
Wetlands that are exceptionally managed and serve as important areas for birds to migrate as well as help control floods.
Forests that are thick with trees and a variety of wildlife, including some species of animals that are only found in the Himalayas.
Fossils that are of the Permian–Triassic period, more than 252 million years old, hence making it a place of great geological and evolutionary interest.
Natural springs, fertile lands, and minerals from mountains as sources of farmers' and local people's daily bread and culture.
Every one of those systems is now suffering the effects of climate change, erratic rainfall, and poor adaptation planning. The saffron crisis at Pampore is a warning sign for the whole district: when one ecosystem collapses, all the others start to disintegrate.
National Context: India’s NDCs and the Local Reality
India’s NDCs indicate a commitment to reducing emissions intensity, increasing adaptive capacity, and improving ecosystem resilience. Nevertheless, the national vision has to be transformed into district-level empowerment and execution.
The significant cutback in the production of saffron in Pampore can be attributed to:
Higher temperatures and longer drought periods to the crocus flowering cycle.
Late rainfall to soil moisture and pollination.
Less groundwater for irrigation.
Ignorance of the once essential traditional knowledge systems for sustainable cultivation practices.
These are the ground realities that have to change COP30's perspective on adaptation, finance, and implementation, not as abstract targets but as life-saving actions.
The Funding and Handholding Gap
The distribution of money among the global climate finance pledges is still uneven, with the grassroots almost completely left out. To a farmer in Pampore or a grower in the foothills of VIHI, climate change adaptation is still an abstract idea. They urgently need support from the funders through direct and transparent ways as well as from the institutions so that they can design, create, and utilize the calming environments for their crops.
The loss of saffron might soon lead to the degradation of wetlands, the decline of forests, and the loss of biodiversity in the whole district. Therefore, COP30 must come up with ways that will enable the funds to be routed directly to the local communities, youth groups, and farmer co-operatives to make adaptation people-led and place-based.
The VIHI District is already witnessing the impact of local action through small-scale initiatives:
Implementing rainwater harvesting and constructing pits for water recharge in highland villages to restore groundwater.
The local ecosystems have been enlarged through the active participation of youth in clean-up drives and tree planting campaigns.
Community programs to raise environmental awareness disseminating information about climate adaptation and biodiversity protection.
The Youth for COP program is one of the major contributors to the strengthening of this youth-led climate movement. The Youth for COP sessions were extremely helpful, significant, and full of wisdom, knowledge, and practical insights. They clarified to participants like me how local stories—like that of Pampore’s saffron decline—are related to the big climate picture. The program motivated us to convert awareness into action and link the community's voices to the decision-making at such high-level forums as COP30.
A Call to Action for COP30
As COP30 approaches, world leaders must understand that adaptation and action must start from where the effects of climate change are felt the most, and that is the community level.
With the VIHI District and its saffron growers, we recommend that COP30 focuses on:
Meaningful climate financing for vulnerable, heritage-embedded ecosystems.
Technical handholding for the support of farmers, cooperatives, and youth innovators.
Incorporating climate policy with cultural heritage and local livelihoods.
Innovation by youth, community-led accountability, and progress monitoring.
Conclusion
The fading purple fields of Pampore epitomize the loss that the Global South faces—heritage, livelihood, and hope—if adaptation is severely underfunded and unimplemented.
The saffron fields need more than sympathy, they need support. The wetlands need more than mere acknowledgment, they need active restoration. And the landscape nurturers need more than basic help, they need trust, mentorship, and the chance to work on something that matters.
Lessons from Youth for COP are powerful: change will only be possible with collective action, informed leadership, and local empowerment. If COP30 can embed these lessons into policy and investment, the golden threads of Pampore saffron will weave back, and with it, strength, resilience, and pride to India’s climate narrative.
For me the sessions curated and conducted by The Climate Reality Project under Youth For COP have been wonderful and it was not possible without the knowledge, experience, wisdom, information and so on, particularly the resource persons during all the sessions who were quite interactive, supportive and so clear that it left no ambiguity and all we need to do is to act collectively, with unified approach and handhold each other.
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