Classification of specificities:

A) First classification based on features:

1) Constraining features: Inaccessibility, marginality and fragility

2) Enabling features: Diversity, Niches, and human adaptation mechanism

B) Second classification on the basis of ranking:

1) First-order specificities: Inaccessibility, marginality, fragility,y, and diversity

2) Second-order specificities: Niches and human adaptation mechanism

They are described below:

1) Inaccessibility:

• It is due to slope, altitude, over-terrain conditions, and periodical seasonal hazards like landslide snow, and storms.
• It causes isolation, distance, poor communication,n, and limited mobility.

2) Fragility:

• Mountain areas due to altitude and steep slopes in association with geologic, edaphic, and biotic factors thatlimits the farmer’s capacity to withstand even a small degree of disturbance are known for fragility.
• Their vulnerability to irreversible damage due to overuse or rapid changes extends to physical land surface vegetative resources and the delicate economic life support system of mountain region and environment starts deteriorating due to any disturbance fragility happens at a faster rate.

3) Marginality:

• The factors contributing to such status of any area are physical isolation fragile low productivity of the resources and several manmade handicaps, which prevent oone’sparticipation in mainstream ppatternsof activities.
• The mountain region being marginal areas in most cases as against prime areas shares the attributes of marginal entities and suffers the consequences of such status in different ways.

4) Diversity or heterogeneity:

• The extreme heterogeneity in the mountain region is a function ofthe  interaction of different factors like climatic and edaphic factors.
• Diversity acts as a positive attribute for the interlinked activity pattern inthe  mountain which can enhance sustainability.

5) Natural suitability/ niches/ comparative advantages:

• Mountain provides a specific niche for specific activities or products.
• Examples may include specific valleys serving as a habitat for specific medicinal plants andmountainsactingct as a unique source of products like fruits and flowers and serving asthea best source of hydropower.
• Proper harness of niches can support sustainability, while their reckless exploitation can result in the elimination of niches.

6) Human adaptation mechanism:

• Adaptation mechanisms helps inthe  sustainable use of mountain resources in the past.
• However, with the change related to population, market, and state,severalf adaption mechanisms is losing their feasibility and efficacy.