Film | Mucking Up Mountain Lives पहाड़ी जीवन दबाया मलबे में

Yet another hydropower project disaster devastated property, lands and livelihoods in Himachal Pradesh. This time in a 25 MW hydropower project executed by the Megha engineering Infrastructure Limited (MEIL), whose penstock/tunnel failure caused seepages which turned to a flash flood and landslide devastating farmlands and property in Multhan village and market in the Chhota Bhangal […]

Bano Haqq Kathare highlights diminishing role of community in forest management in HP.

A documentary film by Himdhara Collective based in Himachal Pradesh narrates the story of forest rights and traces the unrecognized efforts of the community in forest conservation policies in Lahaul Valley in HP. Bano Haqq Kathare, a story of forest rights, is a 44-minute recent documentary film in Hindi by Himdhara (an environment research and […]

हिमाचल प्रदेश के सिरमौर जिला में वन अधिकार कानून 2006, का तीन दिवसीय प्रशिक्षण

वनों पर लोगों के अधिकारों को सुरक्षित करता है वन अधिकार कानून, 2006 *उप मंडल संगडाह प्रशासन द्वारा आयोजित वन अधिकार कानून, 2006 पर तीन दिवसीय प्रशिक्षण कार्यशाला के अंतिम दिन संगड़ाह की 19 पंचायतें हुई शामिल!*   *प्रेस नोट: 10 जनवरी 2023* | विकास खण्ड सँगड़ाह में वन अधिकार कानून 2006 से सम्बंधित तीन दिवसीय […]

Tunnels as Temples of ‘New Green India’: Dominant Narratives of Himalayan Dam Building

Abstract The dramatic unfolding of the Joshimath crisis in Uttarakhand, India, has brought the world’s attention once again to the Himalaya. The contribution of a 520-megawatt hydropower dam to land subsidence is squarely in the spotlight. River valleys with bumper-to-bumper hydropower dam building, especially in the North Western Himalaya, in the past decade and a […]

Film || बणःतु हको कथाःरे Bana-Tu Haqo Kathare | Forest Rights Chronicles

For English scroll down. बणों हक़ कथारे, ट्रांस-हिमालयी लाहौल घाटी में महिला मंडलों के तीन दशकों से अधिक समय से चल रहे सामूहिक वन भूमि के प्रबंधन के साझा प्रयासों की कहानी है। फिल्म के माध्यम से हम लाहौला समुदायों की जुबानी सुनते हैं कि कैसे महिलाओं के श्रम पर टिकी इन सामाजिक प्रबंधन की […]

Shrinking pastoralism, fear of eviction — Forest Rights Act is the only hope for Van Gujjars of Sirmaur

Many families who are still landless cannot even buy land because of the state’s policy Article written by Himshi Singh & Prakash Bhandari published on 26/09/23 in Down To Earth Developed with World Bank funding, NH 907A from Shimla, the capital of Himachal Pradesh, to Paonta Sahib is wide and smooth, unlike any typical mountain […]

Disasters in Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand point to flawed development model

Indigenous communities in the two ecologically fragile Himalayan States are routinely excluded from this narrative that fuels reckless growth. Article written by Manshi Asher published on 21/09/23 in Frontline The monsoon of 1999 is etched vividly in my memory. At 23, shortly after finishing my master’s, I was to join a project that worked on […]

In Himachal, a deluge of missed warnings

Himachal Pradesh needs a policy and governance overhaul that prioritizes environmental sustainability and local communities Article written by Manshi Asher published on 16/07/23 in Hindustan Times As swollen rivers in Himachal Pradesh receded this week, and the state began accounting for the losses suffered, a meme began circulating. Barsaton mein pahad ghumne na aayen, kyunki […]

This #WorldEnvironmentDay Just lend your ear to a Kinnaura elder’s voice of wisdom

This #WorldEnvironmentDay Take out 7 minutes 🔹Not to read alarming scientific data  🔹Not to hear world leaders’ promises 🔹Not to plant a tree  Just lend your ear to a Kinnaura elder’s voice of wisdom. From the high Himalaya in the throes of extractivist development, a region struggling against a hydropower dam.