India Travel Times for travel news from India

Restoration work in progress in Jaipur’s
world famous Hawa Mahal

Jaipur: This is the first ever biggest restoration and renovation project being carried out for this historic monument. A budget of around 45 lakh rupees is being spent for the overhauling and painting of the building. Make-over for Hawa Mahal Jaipur: Jaipur's world famous Hawa Mahal is being restored after a long gap of more than fifty years. This is the biggest ever restoration and renovation project undertaken for this historic monument. An estimated amount of rupees 45 lakhs is being spent for the complete overhauling and painting of the building. The restoration is aimed at giving a face-lift to the monument and preserving it for the future. Every step taken in the restoration work is studied well in advance by experts as it is not an easy exercise to repaint and repair the monument and at the same time maintain its originality. ''The cleaning work is under progress and the Hawa Mahal will be brought in its original shape, like it was when it was built. After the painting is done we will apply preservative chemicals, so that the paint is not corroded by dust or oil and its new look is maintained for years to come,''said Dinesh Porwal,paint expert. Experts claim that the use of preservative chemicals on this monument will last for more than 25 years. ''As a tourist coming from Australia for the first time to Jaipur I wish it (Hawa Mahal) was not under construction so that I could get beautiful photos but I understand that it needs the work done. I just wish it was not right now while I am here,''said Janet, a tourist. To maintain its original, 500-year old look, the same colour "Khamira" is being used which is also being prepared in the same manner. The renovation work in Hawa Mahal was started in October and is scheduled to be completed by end of this month. Every year around 20 lac tourists visit this monument which generates a revenue of around rupees 40 lakhs.
March 21, 2005

A Himalayan snow leopard vanishing

Srinagar: The beautiful cat is gradually disappearing from the state as armed poachers hunt them for their rich coat and bones, increasingly being used in Chinese medicine. snow_leopard 2: A dead Himalayan snow leopard in Srinagar in Jammu and Kashmir state. The beautiful cat is gradually disappearing from the state as armed poachers hunt them for their rich coat and bones, increasingly being used in Chinese medicine. snow leopard himalayan Elusive snow leopard faces exinction Srinagar: Poaching, loss of habitat and killing by herdsmen are fast wiping out the Himalayan snow leopard, one of the most elusive of the world's big cats from India's Kashmir, where a revolt against Indian rule has left little room for conservation efforts. That rarest and most beautiful of the great cats, the snow leopard is known to be elusive. But the beautiful cat's disappearing act has been no match for the armed poachers who hunt them for their rich coat and bones, increasingly being used in Chinese medicine.

Poor herdsmen, who often suffer financial ruin if their already scarce livestock are preyed on by the snow leopards, are also responsible for killing many of these highly endangered cats. The armed conflict in Jammu and Kashmir has further exacerbated the problem as the soldiers and guerrillas both show little regard for the species' conservation. "There has been an increase in the killing of the snow leopards in the area. As they move out of the forest region villagers kill them. Villagers try to scare them. If they don't do anything the cats will themselves return but then the villagers don't know that and they follow them, track them down and kill them," said Nizar Ahmed, a forest guard at the Dachigam National Park, one of the few safe havens for the cat located 32 km from main city Srinagar. Current estimates by the International Snow Leopard Trust say that a mere 3,500 to 7,000 of these wild cats are now left in the world, of which 600 to 700 are in zoos.

nternational agencies say habitat protection, captive breeding, and stiff penalties for poachers and international buyers of illegal furs, and public education must all be a part of such an undertaking to save the snow leopard. "The wildlife department is not taking any effort or making the villagers aware of the leopard, how to deal with it when it is in their village. They do not have any network and are ill equipped to tackle a leopard when it comes into the area. Wildlife experts are often informed after days of leopard entering into a village," said Shabir Ahmed of Wildlife, a voluntary organisation working for snow leopard conservation. Worldwide snow leopards are found in the mountainous regions of Central Asia, China, Tibet, Nepal and Bhutan.
Feb 18, 2005

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