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Aug, 2005
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Australian tourist Daniel Mountwhitten goes missing in Kullu

     Kullu: Himachal Pradesh police is hunting for an Australian tourist, who went missing from a trekking trip in the woods in the State last week. Police said they have launched helicopter operations to locate 23 year-old Daniel Mountwhitten, who was last seen in Manikaran region on August 2. Daniella, Mountwhitten's sister said he could have been trapped in the mountains during trekking. "There are two possibilities that could have happened. The first one I really think has happened is that he is stuck somewhere either in the mountains or in a river, and he needs to be rescued. And the other possibility is that something criminal has happened," she said. Police said they have circulated Mountwhitten's photograph and villagers have been roped in to know his whereabouts. "We have been hunting for him since 4th August. We are taking help of trekker dogs and have done an ariel recee also. Police teams are looking for him everywhere. From tomorrow onwards, we will give information about him on the local television channel," said Anand Pratap Singh, Superintendent of Police, Kullu. Police says the only lead they have is a local woman who says she saw a foreigner who looked like Whitten last week asking her for food. But they have ruled out a foul play as Mountwhitten was not carrying much money. According to police records, 15 foreigners have gone missing in Kullu valley, since 1992. While many are killed by locals for money or expensive watches and cameras, most of them seek solace from the outside world in cheap marijuana.
-Aug 11, 2005

Rooftop journey - a way of life for train commuters in Gwalior (Go to Top)

     Gwalior: It is India in its true elements. Sitting on the rooftop of one of the country's smallest narrow gauge trains swaying to the locomotive's movements..all this and more, that too without tickets. But it's sheer hard work and a virtual survival of the fittest before one reaches the destination. Commuters jostle with each other to get a comfortable perching on the rooftop and once there, it's all about how well you maneuver the upcoming bridge or the overgrown banyan tree. For many commuting on the Gwalior-Shyopur Kalan narrow gauge train link in Madhya Pradesh's fort city of Gwalior, this has become a way of life. Most rooftop commuters do not want to spend even a few rupees, the ticket costs and often become a nuisance to those traveling with valid tickets. Even before the arrival of the train, these commuters gather near the tracks and jostle with those traveling with tickets to get their prized seats. Ticket-holders rue the fact that the railways are not doing anything to correct the situation. "This has been going on since the inception of this train and everybody knows that. The top officials do not seem to be doing anything. But the public needs to think that their lives are in danger.They sit on the roof despite warnings," said B.M.Sharma, a commuter. Over the past few years, there have been stray incidents of people falling off the roof or injuring themselves after being hit by a tree branch. Some ticket-holders say it is just a matter of time before this joyride backfires. "They sit on their own will. It is not that the railways department tells them to do this. It has provided compartments for a comfortable journey. But people themselves sit like this. So who will be responsible in the event of any mishap? The people themselves will be responsible, not the administration," said Ashok. Railways officials posted at Moti Jheel Railway station promised that some administrative action was in the offing. "A complaint has been forwarded in writing to the higher authorities. They have not come for the enquiry as a Sunday came in between, hopefully they will come today," Vikas Khandelwal, station master at Moti Jheel, said. The rooftop commuters seem to be a confident lot with the train ambling at a comfortable speed of 15-20 kilometers per hour. Even the train drivers seem concerned for their fellow travellers and blow horns when approaching dangerous bends or over-bridges. And as the small train ambles its way through the primarily rural landscape along the serpentine route, it's just another ticket- less day for these rooftop travelers.
-Aug 11, 2005

US immigration officials testing new visa programme (Go to Top)

     Washington: The United States will be introducing radio frequency identification chips to record all details of visitors to the country, under the 1-94 visa scheme. The authorities will be able to have at their fingertips all information on the visitors, including their fingerprints, the country to which they belong to, and their recent movements. According to Dawn, the proposed US-VISIT system uses radio frequency identification chips to track entrances and exits by visitors travelling under I-94 form visas, enabling authorities to flag down criminals or terrorists. "By testing this promising use of technology, we are taking another step to transform the way we gather information about entries and exits at our borders. With the innovative use of technology, we can protect our citizens and visitors from threats to our security and allow valuable trade and travel into the US to continue and thrive," the paper quoted Jim Williams, the director of US-VISIT as saying. Announced recently by the Department of Homeland Security, the long term I-94 form visas, often used by students and business travellers, is expected to be applied for students and businessmen coming to the US from countries like Pakistan. Officials however said that that Canadian and Mexican nationals would be exempted. As per the plan, the US-VISIT will collect and store on each traveller all 10 fingerprints plus their photo, name, date of birth, citizenship, sex, passport number, country of issuance, country of residence, visa number, date, place of issuance, alien registration number and address while staying in the United States.
-Aug 10, 2005

Desert Rajasthan celebrates monsoon festival (Go to Top)

     Jaipur: Girls and women in desert state of Rajasthan today celebrated monsoon festival of Teej with great fanfare and gaiety. The festival of Teej celebrates the onset of the monsoon in the Hindu month of Shravan, after the long and arduous summer. It also marks the beginning of series of fairs and festivals through the autumn and winter months, culminating in the spring festival of Gangaur. In state capital Jaipur, Teej was celebrated in all its traditional fervour - women bedecked themselves with jewels and colourful sarees, a traditional drape, and applied henna on their palms at a fair organised by the state government. Women were seen riding swings and buying sarees and traditional jewellery. "Henna has a special place during the festival. It has been going on since the olden days when women used to apply henna on their palms. It's good that the new generation is also following this tradition," said Sudha, a resident. Tourists, including foreigners attended the fair. "We weren't expecting it to be so good. Lovely colours, the sound of music is marvellous. Watching all the children dance is quite entertaining, lovely. We've tried the food also. It's quite nice," said Dallas, a tourist from Australia. In national capital New Delhi, a Teej fest brought a lot of visitors at the Dilli Haat (culture mart) grounds with traditional Rajasthani folk dances and food being the main attraction. Ghevar, a milk-based sweet is the traditional Teej delicacy. Married women come to their parents' home to celebrate this festival. Dressed in their finest, they sing, dance and make merry. Though the men also join in, Teej is mainly a women's festival for marital bliss. Women observe fast to rededicate themselves to their husbands and family. It is believed that praying to Goddess Parvati, consort of Shiva, helps bestow marital bliss. On Teej, folk songs are generally sung in the praise of Parvati, whose devotion to her husband Lord Shiva, Hindu God of destruction and rejuvenation is considered exemplary. Teej is celebrated in northern states of Harayana and Uttar Pradesh as well. -Aug 8, 2005

Sweet dish Ghewar in demand in Teej (Go to Top) 
by Lokendra Singh

     Jaipur: Rajasthan, the desert land famous all over the world for its architectural marvels, its romantic palaces and colourful people is also equally popular for its unique, spicy and varied cuisine. In the month of Shrawan (July-August), Rajasthan's sweet shops get packed with different varieties of Ghewar, a traditional crunchy orange honeycomb like sweet dish made in desi ghee (refined butter). A deep-fried sweet dish, Ghewar comes in varieties such as plain, desi ghee and mewa. Ghewar is eaten and distributed among friends and relatives during the month of Shrawan. It is in great demand during festivals such as Gangaur and Teej. Teej is the State's most important festival, which reflects the magic of the rainy season as it starts with the arrival of the Monsoon. Teej holds a special place in the hearts of the people of Jaipur, especially women. "The tradition to make ghewar started with the Teej Festival. There are three main varieties of Ghewar in market Paneer Ghewar, khoya Ghewar and Rabri Ghewar,which when eaten fresh, tastes good," said Ajay,a Ghewar seller. "Ghewar is tradition of Rajasthan. If anybody wants to have the traditional taste of Rajasthan this is the ultimate thing they can have," said Bhavesh, a customer. In Jaipur many hotels are serving this traditional sweet with the run-up to Teej. "We had ghewar and it really had a very good taste. Its like Indian cake. We enjoyed it a lot," said Nehal, customer. The price for Ghewar starts at 1.5 US dollars per kg and goes up to 6 US dollar per kg.
-Aug 5, 2005

Phuket model will kill Andamans, say Indian environmentalists (Go to Top)

     London: Several Indian environmentalists have raised objections to a proposed plan to bring in tourists from the Thai resort of Phuket to the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. The environmentalists say the administration is obliged to protect the islands' fragile eco-system and indigenous communities under a Supreme Court ruling made in 2002. "Unfortunately, more than three years later, some key parts of these orders continue to be blatantly violated by the Andaman and Nicobar administration," they said in a recent letter sent to Congress president Sonia Gandhi. They were quoted by the BBC as saying that Thailand's tourism model would spell disaster for the Andamans landscape and its indigenous population. Last month India and Thailand signed an agreement to bring in tourists to the Andaman Islands. Tourists numbers have plummeted in the Andamans since the December tsunami. The archipelago used to get nearly 100,000 tourists every year. Now, it is down to a tenth of that figure. The environmentalists said the administration had done little to protect the indigenous Jarawa tribe, one of the oldest aboriginal groups left in the world.
-Aug 3, 2005

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