Page 78 - Health, Population and Environment Education 10

Socio-Economic Aspects
Socio-economic aspects include language, people,
dance, dresses, festival, religions, cultural heritage
art, literature, occupation, housing pattern,
settlement areas, etc. People like Sherpa, Thakali,
Lhomi, Mugali, Manangi, Ghale, etc. live in this
region. There is less distribution of populatin
and human settlement is limited. Namche bazar,
Dhunche, Chame, Thak Khola, Dunai and Jomsom
are major selttlement areas in mountain region. Fig: 7
Chharkabhet in Humla district is the settlement
area in the highest place in Nepal. As mountain region has very cold climate, people
wear thick clothes like bakhu, docha, shyamu, sweater, jacket, cap, etc. The houses are
small, made up of stone and wood. Windows are made small to avoid heat loss and
cold. People consume hot and highly nutritious food to maintain temperature in body.
People have the lifestyle similar with the Tibetians. They follow Buddhism and celebrate
Lhosar, Buddhajayanti and other national festivals. There is presence of many cultural
heritages like Muktinath, Gosainknda, Pathivara, Kalinchowk, Chandan Nath, Tse
gumba,Tangboche gumba etc. in the mountain region.
According to 2011 census, 6.73% of total population live in mountain region. However,
there is gradual decrease in number of population there. People in mountain region are
involved in various occupation there. As there is presence of grassland in mountain
region, people are involved in animal farming. Similarly, agriculture, horticulture,
mountaineering, trekking, etc are some other occupation in which people are involved.
Mountain region has geographical difficulty, lack of facilities like health services,
education, transportation, communication, electricity, etc. Hence, people from mountain
region are migrating towards other regions. However, this region has high possibility
of tourism development, hydro-power generation, mountaineering, etc. The Upper
Tamakoshi, Chilime, Sanjhen, Thame, Trishuli A, etc. hydro-power projects are located
in mountain region.

Hilly Region

Hilly region lies in the middle part of Nepal in
between mountain and terai region. It covers 42%
of the total area of Nepal and extends from east
to west. It consists of hills, hillocks, valleys and
other land features. It has moderate climate which
is regarded as better from health point of view.
Based on climate, temperature and land structure,
we can find wide range of plants, animals, birds
etc. Hilly region is very rich in biodiversity. There
is diversity in ecosystems in hilly region due to its Fig: 8
features.

78 GREEN Health, Population and Environment Education Book-10