Five of Himachal’s ‘greenest’ schools win Chief Minister’s GSP Rolling Trophy for 2023-24. Three of these five schools are from Solan, which was adjudged the best performing district. This trophy is awarded annually to the 'greenest' schools in the state, based on rankings done by Centre for Science and Environment’s (CSE) Green Schools Programme (GSP). With schools in Solan consistently practising environment-friendly measures over the last few years, the district was adjudged the best district in the state. Three out of the five award-winning schools are from Solan...
A yummy drink of sabja and honey for believers of healthy living and wise thinking.
In a unique initiative that blends hands-on learning with practical skill development and employability, the Government High School at Anji is training its students to identify and use wild edible plants. Nestled amidst the serene landscape of Anji in Himachal’s Solan district, a government high school stands as a beacon of education and empowerment for its students. In 2023, an innovative initiative has taken root within its grounds, one that not only enriches the curriculum but also cultivates valuable employability skills among its students...
In 2019, the National Clean Air Programme aimed to reduce particulate pollution—PM2.5 and PM10—by 20-30 per cent by 2024, later raised to 40 per cent by 2026. However, most cities lag behind the 2024 goal despite spending thousands ofcrores, with only eight meeting the target, 22 worsening, and many not even recording continuous data. With high standards on paper but poor implementation in reality, an epic battle against air pollution looms ahead.
A buzzing catalogue of some important bee-types—the rock bee, little bee, Indian hive bee, European bee, and dammer bee. *************************************** So far, we have only touched upon a few of the many things about the life of bees and what an important part they play in saving our planet. Honey is not just something sweet and tasty; but what makes it sweeter is the makers of honey—the bees. There are over 2,000 bee species across the world and not all of them make honey. In India, there are five major bee types that produce honey...
Harvesting wild honey has been the main occupation of the Cholanayakan and Kattunayakan tribes of Wayanad, in Kerala, for centuries. But the recent drought and delayed summer rain have affected the harvesting of wild honey. The number of beehives has come down drastically, by over 50 per cent from 2023. Honeybees make hives every year on the same big trees. The right amount of rain, according to the season, is crucial for honey production. But unseasonal rain is posing a huge threat to it, affecting the tribes that depend on honey collection for their survival...
Check out some amazing honeybee facts about these nature's tiny engineers and their sweet secrets. ************************************ How many eyes do honeybees have? Bees have FIVE EYES and SIX LEGS. How do honeybees share information with each other? By DANCING. They do a figure of 8 dance called the ‘waggle dance’. Through this dance, they tell the other bees where pollen, water, etc. is available. How many flowers do honeybees have to visit to get a kilo of honey? About 40 LAKH flowers. But one bee makes only about 1/12th of a teaspoon of honey in her lifetime. So, you need thousands of bees to make …
About the troubling tourism on the peaks and how ‘eco-tourism’ can provide us some relief...
A fascinating narrative by Grandpa Marigan to a curious child, discovering the sacred traditions of the Kattunayakan tribe and how it honours the bees, the bears, and trees for honey. This is the rallying call of the village elder when he invites his companions to join him in going to the forest to collect honey among other things. Marigan, the wise old Kattunayakan elder from Chembakolli village in the Gudalur Valley of the Nilgiris, has been collecting wild honey from the time he was a child.
A future fuelled by biofuels is far better than that fired on fossil fuels. Read why biofuels are a panacea for reducing air pollution caused through automobiles and farm fields, how they help manage farm waste, and enhance soil health. ********************************** Rahul: Hey Anu! You look disgusted. Not knowing what to do about these monumental, stinking garbage bins?Anu: Yeah, dude! Why don’t people deliberate upon solution-seeking rather than piling their sins right outside their homes!? Household waste has a lot of organic waste and am sure there are ways of dealing with it!...