Tag Archives: ghnp

Sep6

Impressions of Working on Nature Conservation in Himachal Pradesh

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Impressions of Working on Nature Conservation in Himachal Pradesh

RaktiSar-2006-0309The issues surrounding the protection of a large area (754 km2) like the unique ecosystem of the Great Himalayan National Park (GHNP) are varied and complex. One of the primary problems is convincing rural, poor village communities of the value in protecting areas which have traditionally been used as a livelihood resource. The topic has been an on-going issue for national parks and sanctuaries throughout India.

This article will share a personal perspective around working on these issues where I have been involved as an advisor to GHNP and living in a rural Kullu Valley for part of each year since 2003.

RaktiSar 2006-0216In 2000, Sanjeeva Pandey, the first director of GHNP, invited me to participate in developing strategies for sustainable livelihood activities with local communities. I spent a month trekking in the Park going through two main valleys, the Sainj and Tirthan, following their rivers. Compared to my hiking in America, there were virtually no tourists on the trails. An Ecozone adjacent to GHNP (250 km2) was also set aside as a transition area, as it was the region of traditional village communities with over 14,000 inhabitants.

The Forest Department (FD) wanted to encourage locals to become stakeholders in GHNP and programs were developed. These included helping in the establishment of a local NGO; micro-credit financing for women; training in alternative livelihoods such as working in forest nurseries (cultivating trees, shrubs, medicinal herbs), developing vermicomposting (purchased for FD nurseries); and developing local products for a wider market (rajama/red beans, apricot seed oil).

We began training young village men in trekking skills to develop jobs in ecotourism. Friends from the US and Germany came to GHNP and were very supportive giving constructive feedback so the men could learn their trade. This provided some men with more consistent work and helped develop GHNP-related livelihoods. Friends of GHNP was created to develop the Park’s extensive website as well as educational materials (posters, brochures, GHNP branding, videos). A Kullu tour company, Sunshine Himalayan Adventures, further trained the local men and marketed the Park using the internet.

These activities in the first years of the Park’s opening, helped some locals change their attitudes about GHNP and the value of nature conservation. In 2003 my wife, the writer Kamla K. Kapur, and I decided we wanted to live in India and with the help of Kullu friends we established a life for ourselves near the Park.

I continued working with GHNP and locals, trekking over 1,200 km with Sanjeeva in GHNP. But actually living in the region exposed me to the serious hardships of many poor villagers experienced. It was obvious how difficult it was for them to be concerned about protecting the Park, when getting enough to eat, having sufficient firewood to cook and stay warm, and dealing with a pervasive lack of health care were the immediate and crucial concerns. A big shift occurred when a young pregnant woman from a remote, higher village sadly died from a breach birth near our village. Talking to locals about health care, I discovered that it was not readily available with the exception of a more distant government hospital in Banjar and a small surgery clinic in Jibhi run two weekends a month by Lady Willington Hospital (LWH).

KHM Alwah Kids registering-09-0071Kamla and I met Drs. Shelia and George Varghese from LWH and we started a health mela program to reach the local villages. In 2006 Avnish Katoch an NRI living in the US, contacted me about starting an NGO to help improve the quality of life and protect the environment of Himachal Pradesh. We set up My Himachal with a small group of NRIs, and it was registered as a non-profit organization in the US and later as an NGO in HP. The Kullu Health Mela project was expanded through the donations of friends in the US and has become an on-going part of MH’s activities. Working with Indian and foreign doctors, especially Drs. Jeph & Kaaren Mathias from New Zealand, data has been collected on child nutrition and malnutrition. Local women were also trained as nutritional workers for their villages. Our surveys have shown high percentages of persistent childhood malnutrition with all the troubling impacts on physical and cognitive development.

My Himachal has expanded its health programs in the past two years to include support for local nature conservation and education. MH has also brought in Indian and foreign student volunteers who have worked on ecotourism development and job creation, including MBA students at the SP Jain Institute of Management and Research (Mumbai). We are expanding our network of foreign advisors in national park and community development, and rural economics. We also interact with other environmental NGOs on watershed conservation and ecotourism issues. My Himchal has taken over the responsibility for maintaining the GHNP website and is currently updating it as a prime source of Park information. With the recent notification of GHNP’s placement on the UNESCO World Heritage Site Tentative List, there is even more MH focus on support for the Park.

KHM Alwah Kala Jatha prs 09-0031Aware of the enormous impacts of climate change and global warming, MH is gearing up for projects which will use our ground teams to survey and interact with rural communities to better understand their preparedness for all the enormous impacts that will occur in Himalayan regions over the next 5-10 years. These include glacial recession and water availability (for farming irrigation, watermills, hydel projects, etc.), variability in monsoon arrival and intensity, flooding and drought, shifts in the growing ranges of agricultural product (e.g. apples and other important HP fruit), increasing forest fires, and both insect pest and disease vectors moving into warming, higher elevations. Many of these problems have already begun in HP.

The ground teams My Himachal have developed lay the foundation for us to collaborate with villagers, friends, and associates in different areas of HP. This will further our goal to both uplift the people and protect the unique Himalayan environment of this beautiful state.

For more information:

My Himachal: www.myhimachal.com

GHNP: www.greathimalayannationalpark.com

©2009, Payson R. Stevens.

Payson R. Stevens is an American trained in the earth sciences and art. For over 25 years he was involved with working with NASA, NOAA, and the USGS on global change issues. He lives half the year, with his Indian wife, in a remote area of the Kullu Valley, where he paints, writes, and does seva work. More of his artwork can be seen at www.energylandscapes.com

paysonThe author and his wife, Kamla K. Kapur (www.kamlakkapur.com)

Apr26

Great Himalyan National Park: a sorry saga of eco-tourism

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Great Himalyan National Park: a sorry saga of eco-tourism

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Not many of you have ever heard of Great Himalayan National Park (GHNP). A piece of 765 sq-km area of land offers a vast range of tourism varieties to those seeking refreshing and adventurous break from their routine work. Far from busy and noisy life of cities, about 60-km from Kullu town, GHNP is a perfect place for getting feel of well deserved outing. Ironically even after its existence in 1984 the park has failed to witness desired attraction, as far as tourism is concerned.

GHNP, comprising the area of watersheds of Jiwa, Sainj, and Tirthan rivers was selected under the eco-tourism policy in May 2001 with other 5 locations in state. The policy was launched with much hope but with little result. Observations showed that the eco-tourism attraction has not much helped to enhance the tourist influx here. In fact the lack of publicity and soft approach in implementing the policy has failed to serve the desired result.

Initially when GHNP was created the major goal was to develop it as a national park. The goal was to convince the locals to preserve the environment and develop a sense of self conservation among villagers around the park.

The eco-tourism has not achieved its potential at GHNP despite it offers various attractions ranging from adventure sports like rock climbing, rappelling, river crossing, and fishing in the eco zone and long treks into the GHNP for bird watching, wildlife spotting and long nature trails. The treks are selected on the basis of the capabilities of tourists. Interestingly the tourists can have the feel of local culture and customs thanks to local fairs galore which are celebrated by villagers with much fanfare and enthusiasm.

No doubt, GHNP is an ideal location for eco-tourism. The 25 trekking guides who are locals are professionally trained for the eco zone. All the porters and cooks are also locals. There is a nursery which grows medicinal herbs so that the villagers who depended on the forest resources of the now protected area of the park can actually use the plants from nursery and grow their own medicinal plants for sustenance. In addition to this, entry in GHNP is permitted only with a local guide. This is done to restrict the number of people entering the region and also so that the local residents benefit from tourism in that area.

Moreover the home stays the main catchy feature of eco-tourism, is another untapped potential here. Inquires shows that many tourists want to experience the local culture and accustom and in that case there is no better way than home stays.

15But despite all this, only a few locals are being benefited from the tourism that is being generated in the area. There is urgent need to build a model in which locals should have an opportunity to sell home made products like shawls, handicrafts and medicinal products to the tourists. Also building on the business model for home stays in the area will bring a tremendous benefit. Currently there is only one home stay which always remains overbooked. The eco-tourism will really be viable in park if a single governing body is created which has the authority to take the decisions for the park. Ironically, the BTCA model is not working as it was supposed to be. BTCA formerly known as SAHARA is formed for the betterment of locals.

In fact the progress has been slow and the true potential of GHNP is really not being exploited. Although responsible tourism is the key to eco tourism, awareness levels of GHNP have been very low which is a major problem here.

Interestingly, Divya Sawant and Gautam Bhatia the students of SP Jain Institute of Management and Research, Mumbai, currently on their Development of Corporate Citizenship program with My Himachal, a NGO are working on a plan to develop a sustainable model for eco tourism in the GHNP area. Their immediate plan is to develop a marketing strategy for eco-tourism in GHNP.

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Says Divya and Gautam, there has been hardly any promotion for this location and also the present efforts are towards treks inside the park for the extreme trekkers when there is actually scope for the park to be a family retreat also with activities in the eco zone. Accessibility to the region is another issue. The roads are poor due to persistent rain and poor maintenance, points out Divya and Gautam who are currently doing extensive field survey and analysis of situation on the hand involving interactions with villagers residing there.

They have met the locals staying within the eco-zone the western boundary of the park inhabited by 160 villages. While disclosing their plans the students say, we talked to the villagers living there in order to gauge what they feel about their source of sustenance being converted into a protected park. We wanted to know on how they have adapted to this change and in what way have the local governing bodies helped their employment opportunities and income generation activities.

The villagers in the area were used to depend on medicinal plants from the park for their livelihood but since the park have become a protected area, they now have to rear goats for their living. Most women are part of the Women Saving and Credit Group an initiative by BTCA. The villagers outlook towards life in the valley was quite defeatist and they were resigned to the belief that their life would not improve. On further probing about the initiatives taken by the successive state governments, they seemed sceptical and have lost faith in governing bodies.

Judama Devi, a member of the Women’s Saving and Credit Group was used to depend on medicinal plants from the park for her family’s livelihood. However since the park has become a protected area, she along with her unemployed husband now rear goats to make their both ends meet. The family have lost faith in state government and BTCA as well. They seem to have the opinion that nothing is really being done to support them and even the initiatives being taken by BTCA are not working well. Judama Devi further says, BTCA currently offered locals the option to purchase medicinal plants from the nursery so that the villagers could grow them on their own. But the soil was infertile and the plants were not really growing in and around their house. So finally the benefit was nil, she rues.

Another sufferer, Harilal from Dhar village is pessimistic over the present initiatives. The BTCA members have not visited Dhar which is one of the more accessible villages in the area, he laments. According to Mr. Gopal the current in-charge of BTCA, despite some of the initiatives taken so far, the time to get approval for each initiative is very long. The most proposals are lost in government offices and the proposals are actually never implemented, rues Gopal who is also the Panchayat Pradhan.

Awareness about GHNP is another major roadblock, inform Divya and Gautam. GHNP is not even listed as a tourist destination on the Himachal Tourism Website. Being one of the largest national parks in the country one would think that it would be given the necessary importance to bring responsible to tourist to the area.

Providing alternate means of sustenance to locals who previously depended on the forest also is an uphill task especially since most villagers are losing faith in the present system and further time passing by without any action is not helping, point out Divya and Gautam.  The handloom, handicrafts, medicinal plants in the eco zone etc are few of the employment opportunities which are being explored, but some strong decisions need to be taken accompanied with an implementing action plan is the need of the hour, they suggest .

Developing small scale tourism in GHNP while striving to have as little impact on the fragile and pristine protected areas of GHNP is one of our primary objectives, they reveal. Educating the travelers while directly benefiting the social stability, economic development and political empowerment for the local communities (Community Based Ecotourism) will be another key objective of our study, they inform.

Based on their surveys and study, Divya and Gautam suggest few measures to improve the situation at GHNP. They Say, improving accessibility to the region is most crucial one. The state government should look at starting a special bus service for travellers to the park which would provide convenience, comfort and ease of luggage space for the tourists. Improving awareness is another thing that can help lot to popularise the park all over. The developing of comprehensive and extensive website as the internet is the major source for information for most tourists these days. The need is also there to create new independent governing body comprising of government officials, local NGO and representatives from local villages to act as the decision maker for the region and help the overall development of the region.

This independent governing body which would not only provide a channel for local villagers to raise their concerns but having locals on the board may build trust in the villages. It will also ensure the training and skill development of the locals; provide avenues for locals to sell their home made products and co-ordinate home stays etc to bring direct benefit to the locals.

Ironically, Divya and Gautam have also done awareness survey on GHNP, in which only 23 people out of 80 were heard about it.

Mar31

Nature Trails: From the bustling streets of Mumbai to the tranquil environment of GHNP in Himachal

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Nature Trails: From the bustling streets of Mumbai to the tranquil environment of GHNP in Himachal

ghnpAs two nature enthusiasts from SP Jain Institute of Management and Research, Mumbai we were quite excited when we were lucky enough to get an opportunity to work as part of our curriculum (Development of Corporate Citizenship – DOCC) with My Himachal on an eco-tourism project for the Great Himalayan National Park (GHNP) in the Kullu district.

Almost three days into our project we were still struggling to come up with a suitable definition for the word ‘Eco tourism’ with respect to the GHNP and spending hours researching online was not getting us anywhere. We decided the best way to define our objectives for this project and to actually understand our role here was to visit the park and get a firsthand experience on what the park has to offer.

We began our journey to the hallowed portals of the Great Himachal National Park with a visit to the main office at Shamshi. The officials there were very helpful and on such short notice arranged for our transport and accommodation at the Park. On reaching Sairopa we eagerly awaited the trek into GHNP. We were told that it is a 9 km trek from Gushaini (a small village on the outskirts of the park) to the GHNP entrance. Though we knew that one can only reach GHNP on foot, a 9 km trek seemed a little difficult for us business school students used to a life across our laptop screens, buried into our assignments. But our excitement knew no bounds since we were astounded by the beauty of Sairopa and we waited for what would greet us in the interiors of this untouched land called GHNP.

The genuineness of the people of this region was no shock to us since each soul we met in Himachal was out to make us feel as comfortable as we city-breed students could. Our guide for the trek was a lad named Charan Chauhan, a sweet, enthusiastic, knowledgeable and energetic trekker. He kept us engrossed throughout the 9 km walk to the park with stories on how the park’s existence had come about and how he came about being a trekking guide at the GHNP.

Our main objective of the trek was to meet the locals staying within the Eco-zone (the western boundary of the Park inhabited by 160 villages historically dependent on forest resources) , to talk to them in order to gauge what they feel about their source of sustenance being converted into a protected park. We wanted to know on how they have adapted to this change and in what way have the local governing bodies helped their employment opportunities and income generation activities. We felt a firsthand experience of a journey into the Park would help a long way into understanding its strengths and weaknesses.

We met a quaint family of five living in small log hut en route to GHNP. They used to depend on medicinal plants from the park for their livelihood but since the park had become a protected area they now reared goats for a living. The woman of the house was a part of the WSCGs here (Women’s Saving and Credit Group-an initiative by the Biodiversity Tourism and Community Advancement (BTCA) group) and the man of the house was comparatively inactive. This family’s outlook towards life in the valley was quite defeatist and they were resigned to the belief that their life would not improve. On further probing about the initiatives taken by the Government they seemed sceptical and had lost faith in the present governing bodies.

Trekking further we were lucky to meet a man named Harilal from a village called Dhar. We were astounded by his positive attitude, his smiling face was inspiring. He told us that his family relied on a little farming and cattle for sustenance and said that he was on the lookout for more job opportunities. We found that there were primary schools within a radius of 1km around each village though the middle school was quite far. He said that children in his village were studying and he had high hopes for their future. But again he was pessimistic about the present initiatives been taken by the governing bodies.

All the other people we met fell into either one of the above categories but most locals were accepting the fact that the Park was now a protected area and had to look for other avenues for their sustenance. After speaking to the villagers we started our journey back to Gushaini and then to Sairopa.

We learnt about the wide spectrum of activities the Eco zone and GHNP had to offer for a tourist when we spoke to Mr Shesh Ram, the oldest serving trekking guide in Sairopa. One has an array of choice between adventure sports such as rock climbing, rappelling, river crossing, and fishing in the Eco zone or long treks into the GHNP for bird watching, wildlife spotting and long nature trails in GHNP. Also we were lucky to have the opportunity to speak to some tourists from Mumbai who had been on a trek to Shilt hut in GHNP. They were more than satisfied with the service provided and they could not stop talking about their experiences. But speaking to them we realized that they had carried out a careful search of national parks in India and had extensively planned their trip unlike most Indian tourists. We wondered if these nature lovers would have come to GHNP if they had not had the patience to keep researching and not giving up each time they met a road block in the planning of their trip – be it the fact that there is no brochure/website about GHNP which mentions the prevailing rates or the fact that there is not even a mention of GHNP on the Himachal Pradesh Tourism website!

Over the last 3 days spent at the GHNP we have realised the road ahead is long and has many obstacles. GHNP is a paradise on earth but its inaccessibility (by road) and lack of information about it do pose a major challenge in attracting people to it. Providing alternate means of sustenance to locals who previously depended on the forest also is an uphill task especially since most villagers are losing faith in the present system and further time passing by without any action is not helping. Handloom, handicrafts, medicinal plants in the Eco zone etc are few of the employment opportunities which are being explored, but some strong decisions need to be taken accompanied with a implementable action plan is the need of the hour. Keeping in mind that responsible tourism has to be the key outline we have come to understand what really eco tourism is about. We have realised that developing small scale tourism in GHNP while striving to have as little impact on the fragile and pristine protected areas of GHNP is one of our primary objectives. Educating the traveller while directly benefiting the social stability, economic development and political empowerment for the local communities (Community Based Ecotourism) will be another key objective of our study.

Our visit to the GHNP has been a completely new experience from the bustling streets of Mumbai to being surrounded by lush mountains roofed by clouds. GHNP gives the mind the peace which no place else can give and has lot to offer an adventurous traveller. Over the next few weeks we hope to bring about a significant positive impact to this region to the best of our abilities.

The above article has been written by Divya Sawant and Gautam Bhatia. Both of them are students of SP Jain Institute of Management and Research, Mumbai. They are currently on a 6 week internship with My Himachal as part of their DOCC (Development of Corporate Citizenship) program. They are presently working on a plan to develop a sustainable model for eco tourism in the GHNP area. Their immediate plan is to develop a marketing strategy for ecotourism in GHNP.