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Raj Relics
With large part of its precious heritage having already been lost in the maze of haphazard constructions, the government has come out with Draft Heritage Report, whereby residents will be motivated to incorporate British architectural features in the new buildings they construct. Planned and developed by the British on seven hills, Shimla is known worldwide for its architectural masterpieces dotting the Mall and other parts. The issuing of the Draft Heritage Report, which will form part of the Shimla Development Plan is aimed at encouraging people to adorn their houses with sloping roofs, dormers, chimneys, porches, doors and windows, which were used by the British in the numerous buildings they constructed. Most of these features were replicated from European buildings during the days of the Raj. Heritage Zone
Though the INTACH had identified 329 structures in and around the town to be declared as heritage buildings but the government has decided to include only 97 of these for the time being. The list of these 97 structures both private and government will be placed before the Cabinet for its approval. In order to ensure conservation of heritage along the Mall, the stretch from Chotta Shimla to the Vice-Regal Lodge has been notified as Heritage Zone. Only reconstruction along old lines is permissible in this zone and that too in strict accordance with heritage regulations and projecting the original structures. It is being suggested that in order to encourage people to adopt the British architectural features, prepared doors, windows and other material be supplied through some agency like the Municipal Corporation or a development agency at subsidized rates. “The new structures that come up in a particular locality should be in consonance with the prominent British time building in that particular area so that there are no eye sores in the form of ugly concrete structures,” says an official. Names galore
Perceived and established by the British during colonial period in first half of the 19th century as their summer capital, the town had acquired global fame by the time the British left it in 1947. Known by various names like “Indian Mount Olympus” “Abode of the little tin Gods” and “British Jewel of the Orient” Shimla has a name in the international market due to its unique architectural and beautiful buildings that dot the cityscape. The British in trying to recreate homely atmosphere used English architecture while constructing their houses. However, with time they also incorporated the indigenous style as a result of which some of the buildings display attributes of a different style coined as the Anglo Indian architecture. The Bantony, the summer palace of the Maharaj of Sirmour is a perfect example of this style. Gothic architecture
Swiss Chalet bungalows were the most common in Shimla along with Baronial Chateaus with corrugated iron roof and Tudor Gothic, a dull but dignified style. The city possesses distinct British heritage, including institutional buildings, bungalows, churches, theatres, schools, hospitals street pattern Some of the architectural masterpieces constructed by the British include Vice Regal Lodge, Gorton Castle, Bantony, Railway Board building, Gaiety Theatre, Town Hall, Auckland House, Ellerslie, Barnes Court and Chalet Day School. The houses were named either after the name of the owner like Kennedy House, Bentick Castel or after important features on which they were located like Mt Pleasant Lodge, Knollswood Lodge, Observatory House or on the physical characteristic around it like natural vegetation – Oak Ville Violet, Fir Cottage, Pine Lodge or North View, Snow View. Many of the names of houses were also changed as its ownership changed like Allan Bank was called Nunnery in 1840 when its was occupied by three sisters. Like most of the other pedestrian hill stations set up by the British, Shimla too is a melancholy shadow of its past. However, with the government now keen to take some concrete steps it is being hoped that there will be thrust on heritage conservation so that it preserved for posterity. “Shimla should be declared a heritage city and making heritage conservation as a people’s movement is the foremost necessity,” feels Mr B.S. Malhans, Convener of the Shimla Chapter of the
INTACH.
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Bold and Beautiful They are talented, curvaceous and eloquent beauties who strongly believe in Tibetan values and the Dalai Lama. All said these six bold women from the roof of the world are all set to defy the Tibetan government by taking part in the ‘un-Tibetan’ and ‘untraditional’ Miss Tibet contest from October 13 to 15. If contestants in the past showed their guts by confronting the conservative Tibetan society by merely participating, this time the contestants would go a step further and strut around in their shapely figures in the swim-suit round to be thrown open to the general public for the first time. For the organisers, it has been a roller coaster ride. Three years back, presenting a sole contestant, producer-director Lobsang Wangyal said Tibetan girls being traditional lack confidence and shy away from such contests. But this time, he was proudly introducing half-a-dozen ‘beauties with brains’, brimming with confidence and talking expressively abouountrymen in Tibet and sing them with a band. It would be a challenge for me to help the Tibetan issue by raising it at international forums using peaceful means,” she says. A graduate from DAV College, Dehradun, Tenzin Palmo says Tibetan women are not shy to be themselves anymore. “I’m presently working in a call center and want to have a short stint as air hostess just to fulfill my dream of flying. The pageant would be a good way of getting exposure and I would end up learning even if I don’t get the crown,” she says. Chips in Tseten Yangzom, “In any country, a women who wins a beauty crown stands in front of the world to represent her country and people. Miss Tibet would be the woman who tells the world that Tibet and Tibetans still exist. The question would be “So what about Tibet?’” Producer Director, Lobsang Wangyal says, “It’s time to move on and put the criticism behind us. It must have been a tough decision for these girls to confront the conservative views to participate in the contest. I expect even more contestants in future.” The Prime Minister of the Tibetan government-in-exile though has expressed strong reservations about the contest. In an interview with The Tribune in 2004, Prime Minister, Prof Samdong Rinpoche, had said each human being had his or her individual capabilities and these cannot be judged in this manner from the outside, going by sheer looks of a person walking down the ramp. And, he added, it was not that he was not modern. In fact, he said, he was a post-modern thinker and was saying this considering the scheme of things in the next century. "I say this very much in terms of the 22nd and 23rd centuries," he said. The road ahead
Unlike winners of other beauty crowns, the Miss Tibet contests have been rather jinxed when it came to participating in international pageants. Last year, Miss Tibet Tashi Yangchen was expelled from the Miss Tourism World pageant, allegedly under pressure from the Chinese Embassy. The decision had come as a bolt from the blue for both Tashi and her scores of fans as she had already taken part in some of the events of the pageant, which was held at Harare in Zimbabwe.
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Conservation: bane or boon? Prowling leopards have been, indeed, giving sleepless nights to villagers, while wild boars, monkeys, blue bulls, sambars and other animals have been destroying crops. The environmentalists see the shrinking and fragmentation of forests due to increasing human activities, which have destroyed the natural wild life habitats, as the main reason behind the increasing animal-human conflict. The species like leopards and monkeys have been over the years rendered as ‘ecological dislocates’ with the destruction of their habitat. The big cats have been making frequent forays into human settlements, and taking a heavy toll on human beings and the livestock. The villagers, however, increasingly feel that the problem has become intractable because certain species have been provided ‘over protection’ under the laws like the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act and the Wild Life Protection Act. They held a huge rally in front of the office of the Chief Wild Life Warden early this week to press their demand for an integrated plan to deal with the problem including measures like translocation, mass sterilisation and scientific culling of troublesome wild animals. Mr Kuldeep Tanwar, President of the State Gyan Vigyan Samiti, which is spearheading the campaign, asserts that the farmers appreciated the need to protect wild life but things have been taken too far and a stage has reached where they were at the receiving end. Every year crops worth over Rs 400 crore were being destroyed and prowling leopards and bear were targeting human beings and livestock with unfailing regularity. The gravity of the situation could be judged from the fact that 2319 out of the total 3,200 panchyats in the state have been affected by the problem. The population of monkeys has increased from 60,000 to 3,17,000 over the past two decades and there were also 55,600 langurs to add to the misery of the farmers. There has been a sharp increase in the numbers of leopards, which has swelled from a meagre 120 in 1984 to over 1000. Besides shrinking green cover, the problem has been aggravated due to wrong afforestation policy, under which commercial species like pine, which cannot support wild life were planted on a large scale for decades. The samiti wants that suitable species which provide food for wild animals and even coarse food grain crops be planted in open spaces to keep the wild animal stay put in forests. Other measures include translocation of monkeys and other animals into deep forests and their mass sterilisation. However, these measures will take a long time and to provide immediate relief, ban on export of monkeys should be lifted and selected species in specified areas be declared vermin for a specified period of time. Further a task force must be set up to carry out scientific culling of undesirable animals in such areas. One may or may not agree with the demands of farmers but one thing is amply clear that effective measures are needed to ensure peaceful co-existence of humans and animals. Otherwise, villagers could resort to killing of animals on the sly and there have already been several such cases involving leopard, which is among highly protected species. Killing it is an offence under the Wild Life Act, punishable with a minimum of three years imprisonment and a fine of Rs 10,000. Yet the leopards are not by any account an over protected species. They have been at the receiving end. Villagers have killed as many as 59 leopards by putting up traps and snares over the past eight years. The problem has the potential of blowing into a major political issue. In fact, the Forest Minister, Mr Ram Lal Thakur, has been a victim of the monkey menace during his earlier term. He lost the assembly election as per the villagers because of the canards spread by his rivals that monkeys trapped from urban areas like Shimla were released in villages by the Forest Department. He sure has reasons to take the campaign seriously.
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Village of a lesser God Everything, is in abundance here—fresh air, melody created by the flowing water of Satluj and picturesque hills and lush green forest cover. But for the villagers of Neilla, Bilaspur district, such things hold little meaning. Because they have to worry about the basic amenities, which is required for a dignified existence. What makes the matter worse that these are they people who sacrificed their land for Bhakra Dam. Much of their land had been acquired for laying railway tracks, which was used for carrying much required material, officials and labourers to the construction site and also a few offices. Despite abundance of water, there is no provision of for irrigation except for one common water tap for 10,000 population and that too for a limited period. The village lacks the primary health centre facility. Worse of all, they have to cover several Kilometers to catch a bus as no government or private buses pass through this village in the absence of proper road connectivity with other areas. The youths of village facing bleak future for the want of proper exposure. Several developmental plans have come and gone, but the conditions of life did not improve. “Only recently under the ‘Pradhan Mantri Sadak Yojna’ the roads were carpeted. But as the village is not connected through roads with its surrounding areas, the problems remained the same. Neither government buses nor private buses are plying through the village. Moreover, roads are so narrow,” says Sanjeev Kumar, who runs a shop here. Hari Kishan (60) a farmer says they are left to the Rain God’s mercy for a good harvest. “We do not have water supply facility for irrigation. While drinking water is being supplied by the BBMB but the state government has yet to think of providing safe drinking water to individual houses. In the absence of a primary health centre, we have to get medical treatment from distance places,” he complains. Sashi Kumar, a carpenter says his niece is studying in class III in a private school, which is about 5 km way as the quality of education in the government high school is poor. The major problem is though she can travel by the train run by the BBMB in mornings but while returning she has to walk the distance. The train runs twice a day from Nangal to Bhakra Dam in the morning and evening. ”The children have to go in far-flung areas to attend higher secondary schools. After schooling only a few goes for graduation for the lack of resources and facilities, he rues.
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Himachal, despite being a favourite destination for moviemakers, has not been able to make its presence felt in the industry, finds out Anandita Gupta Remember Madhuri Dixit (wearing a wispy, wafer thin blue chiffon sari) swirling sensuously on the snow capped, undulating slopes in Sunata hai mera khuda of Pukar. Or a chubby Mala Sinha metamorphosised into a robust village belle in Himalaya ki goad mein, twirling merrily amidst salubrious winds? Well, a majority of the breathtaking scenic treats that we feast our eyes on in our Bollywood movies (except those Yash Chopra’s Switzerland locales and Karan Johar’s New York sequences of course!) are shot in Himachal. For the state indeed has a treasure trove of natural bounty—-blue pines, conifer tree-carpeted hills, lush apple and plum orchids, curvy streams and brooks, winding bends and pure exhilaration! But why is it then, none of the biggest comets in the showbiz industry are Himachalis? Why after all, despite being famous for their innocent, apple-cheeks looks, hard work and humility, those hailing from the fairy-tale locales of Himachal haven’t been able to make their fairy-tale adventure into the arc lights? We find out. “Changing times dictate changing yardsticks. Today having a beautiful face or a well- sculpted body is not enough. What one needs is tremendous exposure and grooming,” opines Chandigarh–based grooming guru Jeet Brar, the man behind Kangna Raut, adding, “Gone are the days when films were considered the last refuge of the uneducated. True, most stars have chucked their post-graduate degrees to follow their hearts. But these stars, nonetheless are educated and well exposed, which helps them build contacts. Agrees Mumbai-based Director Tarun Wadhwa of social-mythological films like Annyai and Basti, “In today’s fast and frantic times of remixes and sleazy movies, when everything sells only if packaged well, actors need to promote themselves as a brand, with fancy publicity ribbons tied on them. But Himachal lacks any film or electronic media institute that can groom the Himachal boys and girls in all this.” There are some, however, who are struggling and making their place in the murky Mumbai studios. They may not yet be dhak dhaking their way into dizzying stardom, but they have taken the first step, pushing the right buttons, turning the right knobs. Model and upcoming actor Deepak Puri is among this young brigade. Having about 60 ramp shows and two movies under his belt, this Una-based youngster has started his journey towards fame. “I began by performing in Kullau Dusshera, Minjer mela at Chamba and Summer fest at Shimla. But I always worked on broadning my horizons and today I’m Mr North India, and working with companies Coca Cola, Fitness Zone and Amartex. But I got my real training at Rai University in Delhi, while choreographing students for talent hunts. Smiles Rini Saroj, from Hamirpur, who’s the winner of several prestigious contests like Miss Himachal, Miss Shimla, Miss Personality and Face of Himachal, “Family support is a very crucial factor in one’s joining a glamorous profession. I was lucky in this respect as my family really encouraged and supported me. But most families in Himachal are too scared to send their girls in these fields as there’s a lot of exploitation involved.” So where lies the solution? “What Himachal needs is some very good institutes of film, modeling and media training, for the right training and exposure,” opines the dreamy eyed BA second year student who’s already done a film called Khawab with Ali Abbas, Shahrukh Khan’s duplicate. Well, what’s needed today to step into the fantasy world of films is education, exposure, a wide worldview and good grooming. Most of the struggling Himachalis starlets and models are today hotfooting to Chandigarh, Delhi and Mumbai for getting all this. If government takes adequate steps in opening some good film and media schools in Himachal, the time is not far when the apple-cheeks of Himachal will set the cine screen ablaze!
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David comes to India with guitar in hand From Australia with love for mountains. Country folk singer, David Clark, is here to bring together the sound of guitar with tabla and flute in his latest album titled David in India. A tribute to the scenic Dhauladhar Hills of Dharamsala, the songs would convince the listeners that guitar is not best suited for rock music only. Songs like Going up the mountain on a Sunday have an overtone on table, with a fusion of guitar and flute and haunting Hindi vocals in the background. The songs promise to transport you to a world of mountain landscapes. The album, produced by the Prabal Pramanik’s Academy of Arts, would hit the market in early November. “David has seven albums to his credit in Australia. His music has strong folk strain and flows melodiously on the tunes of a guitar. He also plans to hold a series of live concerts in Himachal and Chandigarh in April next year,” says Pramanik. Along with the audio CD, the singer plans to bring out text of his poems, which have been turned into lyrics for the songs. Some of the songs have also been picturised on the local Gaddi population in the Triund area in Dharamsala, along with animations made by Pramanik. The attempt is to showcase the cultural heritage of the hilly state for a global market. “More than 5,000 copies of the album would be sold off in Australia and people would get to know more about the beautiful countryside of Himachal Pradesh,” says Pramanik. “The songs in David’s new album would spread the message of universal love by inspiring to preserve the environment and appreciate the greatness of nature. The instrumentalists playing the supportive instruments are from Pathankot,” he adds. The CD is an attempt to promote international cultural relations through this Indo-Australian venture, which can best be described as folk country music style.
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shimla Diary The inmates of the Kanda jail here celebrated Gandhi Jayanti singing bhajans and reciting quotations by Mahatma Gandhi as members of the Delhi Kala Karam joined them on this occasion. Keeping date with the inmates on every festival or occasion, the members of the Delhi Kala Karam led by its General Secretary, Ms Saroj Vasishth, presented reading material for the inmates. A library was set up by Delhi Kala Karam in the Kanda jail since 1996 and it is on the request of the inmates that books are added to the collection. Ms Vashishth was accompanied by theatre person Mr Shekhar Bhattacharya and yoga expert Mr Mool Raj Sharma. After a yoga session, the inmates spent time singing bhajans. One of the inmates Ishwar Das serving life imprisonment wrote a poem on Bapu on the spot and recited to all those present there. Two other inmates Vir Singh Kanwar and Sohan Lal submitted poems and stories written by them for publication. The members of the Delhi Kala Karam make it a point to visit the inmates on Diwali, Holi, Rakhi and all other festivals. Besides providing reading material, the Delhi Kala Karam has been holding theatre workshops for the inmates. So far 20 plays under the expert direction of Mrs Amla Rai and Shekhar Bhattacharya have been presented by the inmates. Infact two of these plays had been scripted by the inmates. The workers help the inmates get involved in some or the other creative activities, which helps mitigate their pain while serving imprisonment and at the same time use their time in the best possible manner. In fact, a collection of poems and stories written by the inmates will shortly be published in the form of a book. Encroachments
With Karva Chauth and Divali round the corner, shopkeepers and vendors have displayed their items outside their shops in Lower Bazar, making it difficult for people to walk through the already narrow and congested market. Even though during the festival season, permission is given to some shopkeepers but in the absence of regular checks by the Municipal Corporation it has become a permanent problem. Shopkeepers practically cover half the road on both the sides in the Lower Bazar and the Sabzi Mandi as goods are displayed on the road. Now with Karva Chauth and Diwali approaching, the situation has become even worse as people huddle around the displayed items, making it difficult for people to walk. The problem of placing goods outside shops and making extensions at the roof level has always been a problem. There have been times when in case of a fire, the fire tenders have found it very difficult to pass through the congested Lower Bazaar because of the extensions made by shopkeepers. As per the MC records there are barely 175 people who have been granted permission for tehbazari but the number of such vendors exceeds 2,500. The concerned authorities take action against the offenders only occasionally but in the absence of regular checking, the people place their goods on the road the very next day. Governing disaster
The Mountain Forum Himalayas (MFH), a multi stakeholder platform mandated to address issues concerning the people of the Himalayan region organised a two-day state level consultation on Disaster and Governance on October 5. The MFH has developed a long-term approach towards strengthening governance, disaster management, assurance of sustainable livelihood and water related conservation issues in the Himalayan region. They have advocated adoption of joint, collective and participatory approach. The issue of developing a long term strategy for strengthening community based disaster management and mitigation efforts for the Himalayan states was discussed at length during the consultation. This includes capacity and perspective building of local communities, CBO’s and other stakeholders and strengthening of local institutions. Policy makers from various agencies like the UNDP, NDMA, NIDM, senior government officials, academicians and representatives from panchayats attended the state level consultations.
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HIllside
view
In traditional wedding ceremonies of yore, there was no funda like seating the bride and bridegroom on throne-like chairs on a platform. A close relative would conduct the couple amongst the guests. These days, you feel silly queuing up, with a gift in hand, waiting for your turn to shake hands and uttering something witty! Then you shift around tentatively, looking for company. Any dead bore or a plain silly fellow (whom you always avoided on the road) would do. You latch on to him like a leech and chat with great interest, asking questions and listening carefully about his great dreams for his Chintoo and Monu. The poor fellow would bloat, convinced that he has become a genius at conversation. Then lo and behold, you would desert him in a trice— you have spotted a lesser bore! And how we guffaw at every poor joke, smiling or grinning like the proverbial Cheshire cat! After all, it’s a happy occasion — someone has tied the nuptial knot in the mating season, some father has become broke, some contractor’s pocket has bulged. Besides, you must look a jovial, sociable, well-heeled gentleman who does justice to his position as well as to his self-conscious wife, doting daughters and the obedient- faced beta. Otherwise, the wife’s sarcasm later can be unbearable! Look at the wives with heavily painted faces, costumes, lipstick- conscious smiles. Their meticulous observations of other wives will be handy for the next morning’s long giggling on the telephone! The crowning glory is of course the virtual stampede for food. Electronic media’s sting operations need not stick to film star’s bedroom scripts and politicians’ carnal and cash-puffing exercises. Sly camera recordings of jostling and hogging at wedding receptions will be equally entertaining! For, all expose’s end up as mere entertainment— they are seldom taken to their logical consequence. You come back wondering. After that bending, bowing and feet-touching, will the couple be fit enough for the first bout of marital bliss that night? Equally boring are the rituals at other functions. Receive the chief guest (either a glum-faced dignitary or a leader-type waving and smiling at imaginary crowds) with bouquets. A smart alec compere spews out his or her lines. The usual diya lighting is followed by Saraswati vandna, basically a beautiful concept. But often gawky voices without knowing the meaning and the correct pronunciation of the Sanskrit text are given “a chance” to sing. Such favouritism spoils the cause. Once the main (meaning useful) guests are honoured with caps and shawls, the mukhiya rises slowly like an over-burned soul and reads out a report on the achievements of his organisation (instead, can’t it be circulated?). Often an appeal for cash is made — if a minister-type is present on the dais. Other long, boring speeches are stuffed with surplus PJs (poor jokes), poems, couplets, and above all, thick “buttering” of people who matter. Then the chief guest rises stiffly, and delivers the blow! That moment you would prefer a priest presiding over a funeral. He complements the organizers, gives fairly commonplace and banal advice, and reads out the ghost-written speech. The makhan-baaz in the room nod vigorously, trying to catch the VIP eye. The seasoned ones know when to clap and how much. In fact in Shimla and every other town, the bulk of the audience remains the same. A whole lot of our folks must have spent a good part of their lives as audience in functions. I have always pitied the “thanks-giving” bloke. He reads out a list of names (carefully selected so as not to omit and annoy anyone) whose “presence has made it such a glorious function”. The elderly in the audience hold their filled up bladders, eyeing the toilets painfully. All hell breaks loose, as soon as the National anthem is sung and the chief guest leaves. A flood in the loo tells you that the function has been a great success! The lunch too may follow. I have watched diabetics, those with high cholesterol and such other problems hogging gulab jamuns and ice-creams greedily. Nothing is spared or eaten modestly. Muffat ka maal hai na! Surely, a meet can be more lively, creative? Can’t we break this bhed-chaal? Any one who cannot speak extempore should not be invited to the mike. Each speaker need not reel off twenty names of the people present on the dais—he could do with some thing like “all our friends here”. They can also get down to brain-storming straightaway, cutting out all this rigmarole. And why this wasteful business of giving mementos, pens, notebooks, hand-bags and those greed-feeding lunches and dinners on every occasion? In case of government funded functions, it’s the common man, the tax-payer, who foots the bill. If the VIPs are not pleased, they can take a walk— time we put them in their place as servants of society— not the masters. Even if it’s the corporate sector, ultimately, the consumer bears the brunt. Costs are added constantly. Will Himachal’s thinking gentry, including some enlightened politicians and bureaucrats, take the lead? Will they care?
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The increasing conflict between the animal world and humans is evident from the frequent leopard attacks and ever-growing monkey menace, which is emerging as a major issue in the hill state with the villagers embarking on a course of agitation demanding remedial measures. Things have come to such a pass that the farmers who are suffering huge losses due to damage being caused to crops by wild animals year after year are demanding scientific culling of selected species.
I dread going to functions of any kind—wedding receptions, seminars, talks, award- giving ceremonies. The boredom makes you feel so sleepy, you have to make an effort to do the mandatory clapping after each speech. You have to hide your smirking and yawning behind a handkerchief or the folders they supply. After all, you are judged more by your manners and customs in this society than the quality of your mind.