Recently wrote an article which was published in HimVani. The way I see, current elections in Himachal were a farce. There was no manifesto and neither the candidates presented their vision for their towns and villages. At best these elections were a big party.
Water Water Everywhere
Come summer’s and you are bound to find “Water water everywhere†especially if you happen to reside in Dev Bhoomi’s own capital Shimla. Well if by any chance you are thinking of owning an accommodation or travelling to hill station, kindly be aware that you will get into situation and think about “Water water everywhereâ€. As reader you are confused as to what I am trying to convey. Well I am talking about a city which once boasted of being the summer capital of India and today hosts one of the largest populations of tourists travelling to any destination in this country in summers. However the city as of today is running dry. So if you are honeymooner travelling to Shimla, you might get a rude shock at the hotel when staff at the reception tells you “Sir, there was no water supply last night so kindly use water cautiously†meaning you just have water for bare essentials. Continue reading “Water Water Everywhere”
Garbage queen Shimla amongst garbage capped mountains of Himachal
Thinking of Shimla, Dharamshala or Manali will lead you to think of snow covered peaks, green and pollution free environs. Let’s get the record straight as most of these hill stations in Himachal will welcome you with tonnes of garbage lying along the streets or thrown along the crevices in forests. The local newspapers write every other day about the crisis like situation in Shimla with respect to garbage disposal. Few days back Nityin a blogger from Shimla raised this issue in his blog. The issue is being raised constantly but a solution is no where in sight.It will be unfair to put the complete blame on the government or Municipal Corporation. A fortnight ago, I saw a young worker of the municipality cleaning the road near bus stand in Shimla at 5:30 in the morning with temperature down to -9 degree Celsius. I distinctly remember him using a broom with bare hands. A news article in one of the prominent Hindi news daily, mentioned about the shortage of staff for keeping Shimla clean. Continue reading “Garbage queen Shimla amongst garbage capped mountains of Himachal”
Brocolli revolution in Himachal; brothers from Mahunag show way
By: Varun Rattan Singh
Often we hear people saying in Himachal: “Nothing can be done hereâ€. These words have been abused to an extent that the very idea has become firmly engraved in minds of young people in Himachal. The basic idea of Young Guns column at HimVani, here is to break this thought process. So far, the kind of youngsters the column has covered, come from a city background with families to support them. The story, which follows is, of a novel and noble idea pursued from fancy to reality by two brothers belonging to a remote village in Himachal Pradesh.
Mahunag is a small village located on the periphery of Mandi district of Himachal Pradesh. The nearest town is Karsog which is roughly 35 km from the village. Like most of the villages in the state, the civil infrastructure is well in place. Mahunag has a High School with nice small playground. There was even an eco-tourism club in the school. Other amenities such as drinking water supply, 24 hours electricity, forest rest house, rural telecom exchange, bus service, health centre are well in place. The visible signs of development were attributed to two local politicians, Mansa Ram and Mast Ram. Both belong to rival political parties and did their bit for the constituency when voted to power.
Continue reading “Brocolli revolution in Himachal; brothers from Mahunag show way”