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‪The modernization of pastoralism in Soviet Kazakhstan takes place in the wake of a dreadful, deadly episode of sedentarization within the framework of Stalinist collectivization and famine. By the 1950s, the Soviet Socialist Republic of Kazakhstan had recovered a significant number of cattle, but livestock raising was confronted with the shrinkage of rangelands. The expansion of grain agriculture in the “Virgin lands” and irrigated areas relegated pastoralism to the most arid steppe and desert areas. However, Soviet Prometheanism did not relinquish developing this sector at the expense of overexploitation of grasslands, intensification of fodder production and ambitious agronomic and technical intervention on soils and water resources. This article documents this process and focuses on the involvement of political and economic administrations, on shepherds and scientists.‪