Latest news with #Timru
Time of India
10 hours ago
- Climate
- Time of India
Villagers near Mussoorie brave swift currents to celebrate 150-yr-old Maun festival
1 2 3 Mussoorie: Thousands of villagers from Jaunpur, Jaunsar, and Rawaii gathered at the Aglar river near Mussoorie on Sunday, to celebrate Maun, the region's traditional fish-catching festival, despite the heavy flow of water following overnight rains. "The flow of water in the Aglar was very high but that did not dampen our enthusiasm to participate in the festival," said Chander Sarswat, a resident of Jaunpur. In light of the river's strong currents, the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) was deployed this year to ensure the safety of participants and prevent any mishaps. Celebrated for over 150 years, Maun is steeped in tradition. Even the king of Tehri is believed to have participated in the festivities. A key ritual involves immersing large quantities of powdered bark from the Timru (Zanthoxylum armatum) tree upstream at Maunkot. The powder immobilises the fish, causing them to float to the water's surface, while villagers gather downstream to catch them by hand. "I have caught large amounts of fish, and so have the others," said Kundan Singh, another villager. "Although the strong current made it more difficult this year, it was great fun," he added. The preparation of the dried Timru bark powder is assigned to different village clusters each year on a rotational basis. This year, the responsibility was given to six villages in the Silwal patti of Jaunpur. The unique tradition continues to draw large crowds despite the challenges posed by nature.
Time of India
a day ago
- General
- Time of India
Rooted in nature, this security guard is fierce guardian of trees
1 2 3 Rajkot: Whenever the monsoon arrives in full bloom, the lone room of a modest one-bedroom flat in Balsar village, some six km from Rajkot, comes alive with activity. Seven-year-old Nidhi and her five-year-old brother Dev sit cross-legged on the floor, surrounded by a sea of envelopes, diligently packing seeds of various plant species. Their father, Rajesh Baraiya, carefully matches each seed type to the correct address before the packets are dispatched across the country. Welcome to Gujarat's most heartfelt seed bank — not housed in a plush office, but silently thriving in a humble home, bare of sofas, décor, or any modern frills. Baraiya is no trader of seeds, but a security guard in a private company, whose passion has turned him into a diligent guardian of fast-depleting tree species. Despite working in a 12-hour shift and earning a humble salary, this 35-year-old's dedication is as deep-rooted as the trees he has helped nurture. Since 2019, he has been running the Vande Vasundhara Seed Bank, distributing rare and native plant seeds to thousands across India. His only charge? Courier fees. Baraiya started expressing his emotions for trees through poems, but he felt words were not enough to save them from extinction. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Haz tu Kia tuyo. Kia Undo In June 2019, he turned his poetry into action, starting with a few packets in the informal seed bank. Today, it's a collection of over 200 varieties — custard apple, bamboo, butterfly pea (Aparajita), Nepali pepper (Timru), cannonball tree (Kailaspati), black datura, haritaki, and more — many of them vanishing from India's soil but surviving in Rajesh's care. Rajesh has unflinching support of his wife, Dani, who dries fruits and pods. During rains— the peak planting season — orders pour in. In the first 25 days of June alone, Baraiya sent out 1,080 seed packets. His target for the season: 4,000. Among the recipients are 550 schools and colleges in Gujarat — none charged for shipping. With some help from social media and conventional word-of-mouth, he shares his number online and calls start flooding in from Jammu to Kerala. Now, Others send back seeds of their own harvest in gratitude, helping the cycle continue. Hasmukh Patel, a farmer near Kalawad in Jamnagar, said, "Three years back, he was searching for seeds of Leptadenia reticulata ,a rare medicinal plant known as Jivanti Dodi. I found Baraiya and received the seeds, grew the plant successfully. I now donate seeds back to the bank. On weekends, while others rest, Baraiya sets off on long journeys into forests and far-off villages, searching for rare species, pods, or even just a single viable seed. Sometimes, he brings back medicinal plants people request. Every journey adds another layer to this living archive of India's flora.
