Himachal News

Class 10 Himachal board results announced

Himachal Pradesh School Education Board today announced the results for Class X examinations held in December 2008 for winter closing schools. Out of the 33323 students who appeared for the exam, 4857 candidates have a compartment. The pass percentage of successful candidates was 68.03 per cent. Of the 1805 candidates who had appeared to clear the compartment of last year 1310 passed and of the 54 who appeared for improvement in English subject, only 30 students could pass the examination.
Results are available on the website hpeducationboard.nic.in and indiaresults.com. Candidates can also know their results telephonically from the board’s office from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on phone numbers 01892229033-37. Last date for applying for reevaluation and re-rechecking is February 18. The candidates who have a compartment can apply for re-examination on the prescribed form by July 15, 2009.

Water to cost dearer in Shimla

Good days ahead for Chamba Rural  gets GI status
The Chamba district in Himachal Pradesh is famous for not only its scenic beauty but also for its historical temples, archaeological remains and, of course, the Chamba Rumal, a craft fast vanishing into history. But now, with the efforts of the Himachal Pradesh Patent Information Centre of HP State Council for Science, Technology & Environment, a ray of hope has emerged with Chamba Rumal being registered as a Geographical Indication (GI) by the Geographical Indications Registry of Government of India. The Kullu shawl and Kangra tea are already registered as GI.

Once a flourishing centre for arts, Chamba, in fact, got most recognition for the Chamba Rumal, a testimony to which can be found in top museums in Indian and even abroad. The art-form had its golden period under Raja Umed Singh in the late 19th century when the Rumal became a well-known item even in neighboring principalities.
The 'rumal' basically is a name given for embroidery stitched by household women in Chamba region, depicting scenes from the Mahabharata, Raslila. Ramayana and even day-to-day life of hill people. It, in fact, depicts the transitory phase when the style of the miniature school of painting translated itself into the field of needlework. The 'rumals' are generally two to three square feet and depict themes from mythology, pahari miniatures, ragas, etc. The embroidered is dome on coarse cloth with glossy untwisted threads.
The outline is drawn by charcoal and then given to an artist who fills in all the details ranging from the inner composition to the floral or geometric border around the pictures. Both sides of the cloth are stitched simultaneously so that space on both sides is filled up making the design on both faces look equally effective and similar in content. This is why this technique is called Dorukha (Persian term meaning two faces). There is no knot in the thread used. During old days it was an important custom to give Chamba Rumal as dowry.
After embroidery, a frame was mounted to the Rumal, but now due to shortage of skilled carpenters hardly any such frames are being made. The Rumals are anyway available as objects of art these days, and have, therefore, become comparatively costly. The price ranges from Rs.250 to Rs.10,000 depending upon the size, motif and the intricacy in making it.
The Himachal Pradesh government, realising its value, took necessary steps to revive this style of embroidery and started a training centre in Chamba town recently. The Rumals have been made available at all emporia of the HP Handloom & Handicraft Corporation at Shimla, Delhi, Bangalore and Mumbai, etc.
The Rumal got national recognition in 1974, when the President of India presented the master craftsman award to Maheshi Devi, known locally as Adhyapika Jee. Following this, in 1993.Lalita Vakil, another Chamba Rumal expert, also received the same award and there have been others too who got recognition at the state level. However, the craft still remains limited as not many locals can find time for the intricate embroidery.
Lately, some NGOs have come forward to save this old tradition and dying art, but due to lack of coordination between the government departments and people running these bodies not much has been achieved. With its new-found status, the Chamba Rumal  produced in Chamba region by authorized artisans can now find some protection as no unauthorized person outside Chamba geographical region would be able to sell or produce the 'rumals'. Anyone selling or producing fake Chamba Rumals will be liable to pay a penalty of Rs 50,000 to Rs 2 lakh or imprisonment of six months to three years or both under the Geographical Indications Act, 1999.

Rural women rue urban-centric policy-making

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JAWALAMUKHI(HP): Nestling in the lap of the towering snow-clad Dhauladhar ranges, the Kangra valley of Himachal Pardesh in india beckons tourists with the bounty nature has bestowed — antique miniature paintings, ancient temples and sprawling green tea gardens. There is a mini-Tibet at McLeodganj which attracts both Indian and Foreign visitors keen on getting a glimpse of the lifestyle of the Tibetans and wanting to seek the blessings of the Dalai Lama, revered as the "living Buddha".

All important towns in the valley, including Dharamsala, Palampur, Kangra, Mcleodganj and Jwalamukhi, have reasonable accommodation and most of the hotels there have STD facility. Guest houses in the residential areas are few and far between. There is, however, no arrangement for medical aid to tourists. They like locals have to depend on small hospitals private clinics and whatever little these are equipped with. Dharamsala, McLeodganj, Palampur, Kangra and Jwalamukhi lack adequate parking facilities. The traffic goes haywire during the tourist season with vehicles parked haphazardly by drivers.

A survey of the important towns dotting the tourist map of the valley reveals that not much is being done or arranged by the Tourism Department to make the tourists visit and stay comfortable and memorable. Bad roads, unhygienic conditions, erratic water supply, exorbitant rents in private guest houses, non-availability of standard food items and the level at which these are priced, put tourists off.

This coupled with inadequate publicity of the natural and traditional assets of the valley, makes a large number of tourists pack up earlier than scheduled. Non-availability of guides, lack of proper transport facilities and conducted tours within the Kangra valley are other factors which acts as a damper.

McLeodganj, attracts most foreign tourists all through the year but precious little has been done to tap its tourism potential.

Hotels, especially small ones, are ill-maintained and unhygienic; the food is costly and below standard and the transport costly. "The taxi owners loot us because of tourist are not aware of local conditions" says an American tourist, Chris, adding that even the tourist information centre does not help foreigners. Dal Lake, located at a height in Mcleodganj, has lost the pious touch due to the disposal of refuse and filth into it by the institutions around. Residents of Dharamsala have undertaken cleaning-up operations but the plight of the lake is yet to catch the attention of the Tourism Department.

The plan of setting up a ropeway between Dharamkot and Triund and the key towns in the valley is still hanging fire. The area has good scope for adventure tourism. Place like Jwalamukhi, Kangra, Chintpurni, which have popular temples, fail to sustain the interest of visitors due to lack of adequate accommodation.

Another important factor coming in the way of promoting tourism in the valley is the non-functional Gaggal airport in night which is otherwise equipped to operate 10 flights. "My friends from Britain, Bombay and Madras planned to see the beauty of the Kangra valley but have cancelled the programme this year also as they do not want to waste time travelling in buses or trains", says a medical officer.

Most foreign tourists keen on visiting the Dalai Lama's enclave at McLeodganj also develop cold feet in the absence of regular flights from metropolitine cities of the country. But as of now, there is no evidence to suggest that the authorities have any plans to address themselves to these problems.

Shimla, July 1: The forest department of Himachal Pradesh has booked Trident Power System Ltd for axing trees in violation of the Forest Conservation Act, official sources said Tuesday.

The company, executing the 5-MW Uhal hydroelectric project in Mandi district, has been asked to stop the construction work, a forest officer said.

The forest department had accused the company of dumping debris in a tributary of river Beas and cutting trees in the forest area.

The company had axed 18 trees in violation of a ban imposed by the state government, Kunal Satyarthi, Mandi's divisional forest officer, told IANS.

He said the project authorities claimed they had the permission to cut the trees.

Even "if they had the permission, then the state forest corporation can cut the trees on their behalf", Satyarthi said.

The project authorities had not even demarcated their area, according to the officer. These violations came to the notice of the forest department during the demarcation process in May.

However, the company has denied violating the ban.

"The forest department directed us not to cut trees, so we have moved the high court in this regard. No trees have been damaged by us," said Rajinder Sharma, an official of the power project.