Khonoma Terraced Fields

Khonoma Terraced Fields are extensive stepped paddy fields surrounding Khonoma village, about 20 km west of Kohima in Nagaland. Developed by the Angami Naga community using centuries-old alder-based sustainable farming, the terraces cascade down hillsides and form the core of the village's agricultural system. As part of India's first Green Village, the fields showcase traditional ecological knowledge, seasonal cultivation and scenic rural landscape.

Visitors can expect sweeping hillside terraces cultivated with paddy and seasonal crops, interspersed with alder trees used in traditional jhum management. The fields surround Khonoma village and are accessed via village paths and walking trails. Views include layered terraces, forested slopes, and the village settlement above. Visitors can walk along bunds, observe farming activities, photograph the landscape, and interact with local farmers. The area is rural and open with no built structures beyond field huts and trails.

Khonoma village is historically noted for Angami Naga resistance to British colonial forces in 1879 and for its centuries-old alder-based shifting cultivation system, where alder trees are pollarded and integrated with terraced paddy to maintain soil fertility without chemical inputs.

The terraces reflect the agricultural heritage and ecological knowledge of the Angami Naga tribe. Farming practices, festivals and community management of land and forests are central to Khonoma's identity as a model conservation village and showcase Naga agrarian culture.