The National Rainfed Area Authority (NRAA) states in a draft paper ‘Rainfed Livelihoods Progressive Paradigms’ that 60 % of risky http://nraa.gov.in/pdf/ RAINFEDLIVELIHOODSPROGRESSIVEPARADIGMS.pdf , unirrigated and underinvested areas of India support 40 % of the country’s population and contribute 40 % of food grain, besides supporting a vast array of livelihoods. Climatic changes compound rainfed livelihood challenges, which require adaptation, coping and mitigation. Studies have stated that changes in rainfall and temperature patterns will adversely affect agricultural yields, especially in developing countries like India where there are insuffi cient funds for adaptation measures (Parry et al. 2001 ). Forest fringe communities are especially vulnerable to climate change due to their poverty, dependence on rainfed agriculture and their lack of access to modern technology (Amisah et al. 2009 ). This study engages with one such geography and livelihood culture, namely, the forested Karandhai Malai mountain range that runs parallel to the semiarid Natham plains in South Tamil Nadu where Valaiyars engage in rainfed cultivation.

Our narrative of the Valaiyar case revolves around land use changes in two hill villages and farmers’ exercise of plural livelihood options, with the intention of investigating the apparent motivations behind these changes and the long-term implications. Though the study began as an investigation of changes in farming patterns apparently motivated climate change, further investigation revealed a complex interplay of various other factors behind these changes, as the rest of this chapter describes.