An outlook at Purna Kumbh Mela at Haridwar. The shots were taken during the Pratham Shahi Snan (1st Royal Bath) which took place on 12th Feb 2010.

The largest of the “Cat Family” and presently the most endangered species amongst the big cat, the Tiger is what we are going to explore about.

There were originally eight subspecies of tiger, the Javan, the Bali, the Caspian, the Indochinese, the Sumatran, the Bengal, the Siberian, and the South China tiger, The South China tiger being the antecedent of all tigers. And can you imagine that three of the eight subspecies are now extinct. The Bali tiger met its demise in the 1940’s, the Caspian in the 1970’s and the Javan in the 1980’s. Yes, its sad reality. Of theremaining tiger subspecies the South China tiger is the most critically endangered with only around sixty living in Chinese zoos and approximately twenty in the wild (although none have been spotted for over twenty years). This puts this subspecies at the very top of the endangered species list. >> Read more…

Researcher Richard Gross and his colleagues at Nasa’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in California calculated that Saturday’s 8.8-magnitude quake could have cut 1.26 microseconds off the length of a day.

The BBC and other major media reports revealed that according to Richard Gross, the Earthquake that hit Chile, Saturday on 27th February,2010 has brought about some permanent changes in the geography of the earth.Richard Gross, a geophysicist working with the NASA, has reported that the  effects of the Chile earthquake are being compared to those that had been brought about by the earthquake that had struck the Indonesian island of Sumatra, back in 2004. Strangely enough, measuring at 9.1 in the Richter Scale, that quake had been far greater in magnitude than the one that struck Chile. However, the effects of the recent quake on the earth have been far greater.

The Sumatra earthquake had caused a noticeable shift in the tectonic plates of the earth, causing a distinct transformation in the geography. It had also caused the earth’s axis to shift about 7cms, a little less than the Chile earthquake, which caused an 8cm shift in the earth’s axis. Moreover, the earthquake has also resulted in an increase of the velocity of the rotation of the earth. Consequently, the length of each day has also shortened a little, by about 1.26 millionth of a second.

Richard Gross explains that the shift in the earth’s axis and the change in speed caused by the Chile earthquake occurred as it had been a thrust earthquake, casing one plate to shift under the other. The calculations were done by Richard Gross in the Jet Propulsion Laboratory of the NASA, in which he took the help of a complicated mathematical model. However, the calculations cannot be taken to be perfect, as so far, the scientists can only measure the speed of the earth’s rotation to about 1/20th of a second.

Here goes contact details of some of the Dharamshalas between Tulsi Chowk to Laltarao Bridge. STD Code of Haridwar is 0133. Click on the title to get the details.

Sargodha Dharamshala, Mayapur, Haridwar – 228455
Ganga Nilayan Ateetih Bhavan – 227766
Leela Yatri Bhavan – 225052
Sindhi Dharamshala – 226641
Sadhu Ram Maadiwala Dharamshala – 226710 >> Read more…

Chilka lake is the largest salt water coastal lagoon in Asia and 2nd largest in world. This lake is spread in the eastern coastal area India in three districts of Orissa state namely Puri, Ganjam & Khurda. Chilka is the largest watering ground in the Indian Sub-continent for the migratory birds which flock here each December-January during winter. This lake is a home to a large number of endangered species of animals, birds and plants. This 1100 sq km spread lake has a unique ecosystem with a range of aquatic flora and fauna found in and around its brackish waters with large fisheries and the livelihood of about 150000 fishermen living in 132 villages of the coastal islands depends on Chilka lake. This pear shaped lake consists of several islands namely Badakuda, Honeymoon, Kalijai Hill, Kanthapantha, Krushnaprasadrah (Old Parikuda), Nalabana, Nuapara and Sanakuda. One of the beautiful islands of Chilka Lake is the Nalbana islands. Chilka Lake is one of the best bird watching spots in India, and is also popular for fishing and angling.
>> Read more…

River Rafting
This leisure sport gained its recognition in the year 1970 when it was included in the Munich Olympic Games . But it was first journalized by the Lieutenant John Fremont of the U.S. Army in on the Platte River in 1842.

Teesta or Tista River starts flowing from the state of Sikkim after being originated from Cholamo Lake at an elevation of 5,330 m. Said as Teesta Khola in Nepali, it is often refered to as the lifeline of Sikkim. This green river after being joined by River Rangit forms the boundary between the states of Sikkim and West Bengal. Rangit on the other hand originates in the Himalayan mountains in West Sikkim district. Being perennial river, it is fed by the melting snow of the Himalayas in early summer, and the monsoon rains in July-August. At Teesta Suspension Bridge, which joins Kalimpong with Darjeeling, Teesta river is met by its the said Rangeet River, its main tributary,. At this point, it changes course southwards flowing entirely into West Bengal. The river hits the plains at Sevoke, where it is spanned by the Coronation Bridge which links the north east states to the rest of India. The river then courses its way to Jalpaiguri and then to Rangpur District of Bangladesh, before finally merging with the mighty Brahmaputra at Fulchori. >> Read more…

Originating in the Tibetan plateau in the sorrounding areas of Lake Mansarovar in Western part of Tibet Autonomous Region, the Indus river runs a course through the Ladakh district of Jammu and Kashmir and then enters Northern Areas (Gilgit-Baltistan) of Pakistan. The river, locally known as the Singhe Khababs (out of Lion’s mouth), while flowing into Pakistan joins Shayok and Suru to become major historical Indus River.

Water levels remain high during the month June to late August, which is the best season for fascinating rafting expeditions. White Water Rafting on Indus provides spectacular view of the landscapes of Ladakh and Zanskar ranges which housed Buddhist monasteries on high cliff. Rafting on Indus can be undertaken for one to five days. >> Read more…

Though it was my third trip to the Corbett Park , the charm and excitement has not lessened at all from my previous trips. May be because of the fact that the wildlife here possesses a hypnotic charisma and charm or may be the lust to explore wilderness will keep we human being’s driven forever. Add the fact that Corbett’s wildlife does contains an extra bit of unpredictability. You never know what you are going to see in the next 50 meters. >> Read more…

A Bengali news daily reported today that the Tiger census is going to get its start after many hiccups from 4th of March. Modern techniques of collection of DNA rather than pugmark process are being adopted this time. The teams consisting of forest workers, experts and ngo’s will start collecting of Tiger’s hairs, biological extracts etc and they will be sent to to Hyderabad’s National Testing Laboratory. The Laboratory will then after analyzing the DNA’s will give their report. The estimated time for publishing this report is 1 year. Though the 2006 report has been stalled on the ground that the census quoted existence of 274 Tigers whereas Indian Statistical Institutes’s study revealed the figure will be under 80. Ultimately, Govt. decided to stall the report. >> Read more…

Bakkhali is a small beautiful tourist spot situated on the seashore of Bay of Bengal in south 24 Parganas District of West Bengal. Bakkhali is a popular as week-end tourist spot. It is approximately 132 kms away from Kolkata. The sea beach in Bakkhali is very calm and quiet with gently rolling waves which attracts the peaceful minded tourists. This beach is one of the two beaches situated in West Bengal. The beach is about 7 kms long from Bakkhali to Frasergunj. Except during the week-ends and holidays, the tourist gatherings is in small scale in this spot. The beach here is hard which is suitable for cycling and driving. One can reach Frasergunj from Bakkhali by a long walk of 7 kms through beautiful beach of silver sand. Bakkhali is a spectacular seaside tourist spot with Casurina groves lined up creating panoramic views and is famous for its sunset. It is situated on one of the detaic islands spread across the Southern Bengal with most of the islands situated in Sunderbans. The numerous Red Fiddler Crabs crawling on the beach makes the beach area look red and vanish into their holes as you go near them.. >> Read more…

Well, to start with, lets look into the definitions of Rafting and its evolution. Wiki says “A raft is any structure, with a flat top, that floats on water. It is the most basic of boat design, characterized by the absence of a hull. Instead, rafts are kept afloat using any combination of buoyant materials such as wood, sealed barrels, or inflated air chambers.”

Traditional or primitive rafts are constructed of wood or reeds. Modern rafts may also use pontoons, drums, or extruded polystyrene blocks. Inflatable rafts use durable, multi-layered rubberized fabrics. Depending on its use and size, it may have a superstructure, masts, or rudders. >> Read more…

After the Copenhagen Climate Change Conference for the first time, the UN climate chief, Yvo de Boer, noted that the talks in the Danish capital achieved three key things on which the international community needed to build on at the next set of negotiations in Mexico.

“It is fair to say that Copenhagen didn’t produce the full agreement the world needs to address the collective climate challenge,” de Boer said >> Read more…

Maha Kumbh Haridwar 2010 began, 14 Jan 2010 amid huge religious fanfare and tight security and over 25 lakh people took a ’snan’ (bath) in the Ganga on the occasion of ‘Makar Sankranti’ — known as Uttarayan in other parts of the country the day when the sun starts to move northwards marking the decline of winter. According to official sources, over Ten lakh people were there in the sacred city of Haridwar. >> Read more…

Konark is one of the well known tourist attractions of Orissa & is one of the important sight seeing from Puri - the sacred city. Konark or the Sun temple, also known as Sun temple is located amidst a small town named Konark of Puri district of Orissa, India. This masterpiece of Orissa’s medieval architecture is 65 kms from Bhubaneswar and 33 kms from famous tourist destination of Puri. Sun temple was built by Narasimhadeva –I, King of Eastern Ganga Dynasty in the 13th century on the beach of Chandrabagha. The Temple is also referred to as ‘Black Pagoda’ as the entire temple is built with black granite carved in artistic design and is a magnificent example of ancient Orissan temple architecture. This extraordinary example of ancient Kaling architechture was designed in the shape of a colossal chariot with seven horses and twenty-four wheels, carrying the sun god – Surya, across the heavens. Surya being a popular deity in India since the Vedic period. It depicts the joy, grace and the pace of life in its all possible varieties. The temple area is located between longitude 86.08°E and latitude 19.53°N. >> Read more…

On 25th December we started at night for our holiday destination Bharmour at midnight in Maruti Ritz from Faridabad. We reached Chandigarh at a 2.30 hours journey from Faridabad from where one of our friend was also accompanying us in his Maruti Alto. We started from that friend’s house at 10.00 am after having breakfast and decided to travel to Bharmour via Nangal,Una route which was an unusual route we found in our internet search. The popular route is via Pathankot, Chamba. At 3.15 p.m we reached Una where we took our lunch at Maya restaurant which was very delicious. During our break at Una we discussed with the local people about the route to Bharmour. They suggested that it is impossible to reach Bharmour today so we decided to stay at Dalhousie. After an hour of break we started our journey and reached at Dalhousie at 9.30 p.m night by crossing a hectic route of Talwara , Nurpur. Due to heavy rush it was difficult to get hotel at Dalhousie. After an hour of search we finally got an accommodation at Hotel Kumar’s near bus stand. >> Read more…

Any one seeking a visit to the Switzerland of India i.e. Yumthang in the state of Sikkim by air or train from any part of  India has to reach Bagdogra Airport or New Jalpaiguri Rly Station, both around 10 Km. from Siliguri, which is the main business hub in the North Bengal. From Siliguri, about 115 km from Gangtok, one has to hire a car/jeep and travel for three and half hours to reach Gangtok, the capital of Sikkim via Rangpo, the entry point from West Bengal. The Sikkim Nationalised Transport, a Sikkim Govt. transport department outfit also runs a fleet of buses both luxury and ordinary, apart from private buses which covers the distance within 5 to 6 hours.

Sikkim, a tiny state, resting in the lap of mighty Himalayas- guarded and protected by Mt. Kanchendzonga and other mountain ranges is blessed by unspoilt natural beauty. Earlier, a protectorate of  India with monarchial government, it metamorphosed as the twenty second state of the Indian union in 1975. Sandwitched between Nepal in the West, Bhutan in the east, plateau of Tibet in North and State of West Bengal in the South, it offers a pristine and enviable natural beauty which includes alpine landscapes, thick luxuriant tropical forests, rivers in torrents and peaceful lakes – a true Shangrila. In a rugged stretch of  7096 sq. km. are encompassed climates varying from the sultry tropical to the dry arctic, animals like marmots and the red panda, a  wide range of flora from primulas to the magnolia and diverse cultures. >> Read more…