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Read about my visit to Kwun Tong here:
The previous time I was here for shooting, it was back in November 2011. Decided to come back on this day before this downtown district further moves forward.
One of the first New towns in Hong Kong, Kwun Tong was, and remains, a major light industrial area. Its population has been growing rapidly, and the demand for housing, medical and educational facilities and services has been increasing.
In view of this, a number of community development projects, such as the redevelopment of old housing estates and the construction of major parks, have been implemented in recent years.
The other side of this progress in transition is the diminishing of history, soon most of these old concrete industrial buildings will be bygone. With this in mind, I've decided to once again visit this district to carry on with the documentation of what is going to be history in the coming days.
With this note, I shall start with my Kwun Tong documentation tour!
=====
Join me on my previous visit to Kwun Tong : 再見裕民坊 Yue Man Square
More Street shots: Urban
=====
Farm implement near Glasgow in rural Saline County Missouri by Notley Hawkins Photography. Taken with a Canon EOS 5D Mark IV camera with a Canon EF24-105mm f/4L IS USM lens at ƒ/4.0 with a 147 second exposure at ISO 100. Processed with Adobe Lightroom CC.
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©Notley Hawkins
Este santuário está
implementado numa vasta
área consagrada ao culto
Mariano e constitui um pólo
de dinamização de
numerosas actividades de
espiritualidade, recolhimento
e apoio social. Na sua
génese, está a resposta das
populações do nordeste
transmontano à mensagem
de Fátima, através de uma
acção liderada por um
sacerdote natural da região: o
P. Manuel Joaquim Ochôa.
Começou a ser edificado em
1961. Para a sua construção
foi necessária a colaboração
de todo o povo de Cerejais,
homens e mulheres; eles com
quatrocentos carros de bois
de pedra e elas com o transporte de toda a água necessária à construção,
muita da qual foi transportada em cântaros, à cabeça.
Além da capela principal, fazem parte do conjunto do santuário:
l O Calvário (fig.1.1) com uma capelinha onde se encontra um conjunto
escultórico, em tamanho natural, que representa o encontro da Mãe
Dolorosa com o seu Divino Filho.
l Uma Via-sacra que percorre o caminho entre a Capela e o Calvário e
cujas cruzes foram esculpidas em granito da aldeia de Romeu.
Dois anos mais tarde, em 28 de Maio de 1967, celebrou-se a “festa dos
Bispos” como ficou conhecida a inauguração dos quinze Mistérios do
Rosário, que estão representados por outras tantas figuras esculpidas que
se distribuem à beira do caminho entre a capela e a Loca do Cabeço. Com
efeito, nas cerimónias desta inauguração, estiveram presentes os bispos
de Bragança-Miranda, Leiria, Lamego e Dili.
Em 1976 foi edificado o primeiro pavilhão da Casa dos Pastorinhos e foi
ampliada a torre sineira.
1977 foi o ano da comemoração do 60º aniversário das aparições em
Fátima e o Santuário dos Cerejais foi o ponto central das comemorações
na diocese de Bragança-Miranda.
seu desejo ao rei que logo pensou juntar o útil ao agradável: fez a vontade
à esposa e aproveitou o pretexto para construir uma fortificação militar nas
proximidades, dado que se tratava de um local estratégico para a
segurança do reino.
A administração da capela e dos seus folgados proventos determinados
por D. Dinis foi entregue aos frades beneditinos do mosteiro do Castro da
Avelãs, que se localiza a cerca de 30 km de distância, próximo a Bragança.
No reinado de D. João III, foi construída a catedral de Miranda, que passou
a ser a sede da diocese para quem passou a administração do santuário.
Durante todos estes anos, as actividades de culto foram promovidas pela
confraria que contava sempre com um mordomo castelhano, o que
confirma a grande influência que o santuário exerce do outro lado da
fronteira. Do lado espanhol o Santuário é designado por “La Ribeiriña”.
Apesar da grande quantidade de romeiros e da celebração anual das
grandes romarias, o templo chegou ao final do século XIX num estado de
apreciável degradação. Providencialmente surgiu um benemérito, próspero
emigrante no Brasil, natural de Castrelos, de seu nome António do Carmo
Pires.
5l-henrique.blogspot.pt/2013/06/alfandega-da-fe-cerejais-...
Anyone who follows the Chicago Cubs or attends games regularly is aware of the myriad of construction/renovations taking place not only at Wrigley Field, but the area surrounding the ballpark. This McDonald's (built in 1980) sat just across Clark Street from Wrigley. It was frequently visited by me and my family before Cubs games ever since it opened. In recent years Cubs ownership implemented a massive Wrigley reconstruction project. Included were plans for a boutique hotel to be built on this site. The McDonald's remained open for several years before closing at the end of February 2016. Under an agreement with McDonald's Corp., a new restaurant will be incorporated into the hotel design. The building was razed in March, 2016.
Este santuário está
implementado numa vasta
área consagrada ao culto
Mariano e constitui um pólo
de dinamização de
numerosas actividades de
espiritualidade, recolhimento
e apoio social. Na sua
génese, está a resposta das
populações do nordeste
transmontano à mensagem
de Fátima, através de uma
acção liderada por um
sacerdote natural da região: o
P. Manuel Joaquim Ochôa.
Começou a ser edificado em
1961. Para a sua construção
foi necessária a colaboração
de todo o povo de Cerejais,
homens e mulheres; eles com
quatrocentos carros de bois
de pedra e elas com o transporte de toda a água necessária à construção,
muita da qual foi transportada em cântaros, à cabeça.
Além da capela principal, fazem parte do conjunto do santuário:
l O Calvário (fig.1.1) com uma capelinha onde se encontra um conjunto
escultórico, em tamanho natural, que representa o encontro da Mãe
Dolorosa com o seu Divino Filho.
l Uma Via-sacra que percorre o caminho entre a Capela e o Calvário e
cujas cruzes foram esculpidas em granito da aldeia de Romeu.
Dois anos mais tarde, em 28 de Maio de 1967, celebrou-se a “festa dos
Bispos” como ficou conhecida a inauguração dos quinze Mistérios do
Rosário, que estão representados por outras tantas figuras esculpidas que
se distribuem à beira do caminho entre a capela e a Loca do Cabeço. Com
efeito, nas cerimónias desta inauguração, estiveram presentes os bispos
de Bragança-Miranda, Leiria, Lamego e Dili.
Em 1976 foi edificado o primeiro pavilhão da Casa dos Pastorinhos e foi
ampliada a torre sineira.
1977 foi o ano da comemoração do 60º aniversário das aparições em
Fátima e o Santuário dos Cerejais foi o ponto central das comemorações
na diocese de Bragança-Miranda.
seu desejo ao rei que logo pensou juntar o útil ao agradável: fez a vontade
à esposa e aproveitou o pretexto para construir uma fortificação militar nas
proximidades, dado que se tratava de um local estratégico para a
segurança do reino.
A administração da capela e dos seus folgados proventos determinados
por D. Dinis foi entregue aos frades beneditinos do mosteiro do Castro da
Avelãs, que se localiza a cerca de 30 km de distância, próximo a Bragança.
No reinado de D. João III, foi construída a catedral de Miranda, que passou
a ser a sede da diocese para quem passou a administração do santuário.
Durante todos estes anos, as actividades de culto foram promovidas pela
confraria que contava sempre com um mordomo castelhano, o que
confirma a grande influência que o santuário exerce do outro lado da
fronteira. Do lado espanhol o Santuário é designado por “La Ribeiriña”.
Apesar da grande quantidade de romeiros e da celebração anual das
grandes romarias, o templo chegou ao final do século XIX num estado de
apreciável degradação. Providencialmente surgiu um benemérito, próspero
emigrante no Brasil, natural de Castrelos, de seu nome António do Carmo
Pires.
5l-henrique.blogspot.pt/2013/06/alfandega-da-fe-cerejais-...
Read about my visit to Kwun Tong here:
The previous time I was here for shooting, it was back in November 2011. Decided to come back on this day before this downtown district further moves forward.
One of the first New towns in Hong Kong, Kwun Tong was, and remains, a major light industrial area. Its population has been growing rapidly, and the demand for housing, medical and educational facilities and services has been increasing.
In view of this, a number of community development projects, such as the redevelopment of old housing estates and the construction of major parks, have been implemented in recent years.
The other side of this progress in transition is the diminishing of history, soon most of these old concrete industrial buildings will be bygone. With this in mind, I've decided to once again visit this district to carry on with the documentation of what is going to be history in the coming days.
With this note, I shall start with my Kwun Tong documentation tour!
=====
Join me on my previous visit to Kwun Tong : 再見裕民坊 Yue Man Square
More Street shots: Urban
=====
In order to address the problem of water scarcity in Swabi District of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, #Alkhidmat Foundation Pakistan Khyber Pakhtunkhwa chapter has implemented another water project in Village Topy. This water project is expected to provide clean water for drinking and domestic usage to almost 23 families living in this village.
Well, this title proves I must be unhinged but I didn't even forget it since last night when I thought it up so it stuck. Unfortunately two of the clunky signs showed in this shot and I will probably clone them out when I collapse the layers back together. Way too much work otherwise. The crowd was a bit much for a Friday weekday and even highway #66 seemed overloaded with travelers and RVs probably on their way up to Estes Park and Rocky Mountain National Park (area right of the wind mill). Highway #66 does not appear in this shot and thank goodness I had little cloning on the cars! I appreciated the way the sky was beginning to display in a spray on the widest angle shots. I moved in for consecutively tighter shots on the red barn after I captured "The old spread" and tried to crop out problems as was possible. I fiddled with the horizon but it has to be on a slant. The terrain slopes down and left to McIntosh Lake that is over in northwest Longmont. On the right hand side of the frame is the new stock shed where they are housing the ponies and pigs while the slow elk, left, have to feed themselves. There are several exhibits inside the red barn for the mommas to explain to the kiddies. All the kiddies want is a cool soda pop as long as they have to walk. Careful, the chickens and bunnies are under foot; a delight to the kiddies no doubt. I went out again on Sunday and shot more photos including some of the signs so I'd have a record. We can't agree which was the McIntosh barn and which was moved in from the FAA property. A strange day it is because the place was empty but Highway #66 was a real pain with folks apparently heading for Rocky Mountain National Park. We just got out of there last Tuesday and I figure it will be a wild one for the summer. You couldn't pay me to go now, except for a cooler day.
This is the McIntosh-Lohr Farm Agricultural Museum on Highway #66, (not the same as Route #66). I had by now dropped everything else. Though the clouding has been absent recently, they really popped the structures today but I still had to wait for the chickens to cross the road before they allowed me passage. Today, though, served up a sprinkle and they promise 92 tomorrow. Keep editing in the cool, I guess. I am spending extra time on the best of the captures considering these abundant skies. I was just in time for the sky. I looked out of my window and jumped up, gathered my camera and split. I scored shots out here some years ago but the sky was a dud and I was using my old D70. The farm/museum is part way between Largemont and Hygiene, Colorado. Today, I can afford the time to stop and look (it was my "race on debt" for being there) over the old shots I ought to have spotted before. I bet though I'd better manage it in an hour or two. They have added new venues and I am in a wandering mood. Here is one of my results. The day would later collapse to overcast, allowing time to start editing. There COULD be some time involved in editing. After I boiled the layers down to a TIFF, I edited objects I could then.
Este santuário está
implementado numa vasta
área consagrada ao culto
Mariano e constitui um pólo
de dinamização de
numerosas actividades de
espiritualidade, recolhimento
e apoio social. Na sua
génese, está a resposta das
populações do nordeste
transmontano à mensagem
de Fátima, através de uma
acção liderada por um
sacerdote natural da região: o
P. Manuel Joaquim Ochôa.
Começou a ser edificado em
1961. Para a sua construção
foi necessária a colaboração
de todo o povo de Cerejais,
homens e mulheres; eles com
quatrocentos carros de bois
de pedra e elas com o transporte de toda a água necessária à construção,
muita da qual foi transportada em cântaros, à cabeça.
Além da capela principal, fazem parte do conjunto do santuário:
l O Calvário (fig.1.1) com uma capelinha onde se encontra um conjunto
escultórico, em tamanho natural, que representa o encontro da Mãe
Dolorosa com o seu Divino Filho.
l Uma Via-sacra que percorre o caminho entre a Capela e o Calvário e
cujas cruzes foram esculpidas em granito da aldeia de Romeu.
Dois anos mais tarde, em 28 de Maio de 1967, celebrou-se a “festa dos
Bispos” como ficou conhecida a inauguração dos quinze Mistérios do
Rosário, que estão representados por outras tantas figuras esculpidas que
se distribuem à beira do caminho entre a capela e a Loca do Cabeço. Com
efeito, nas cerimónias desta inauguração, estiveram presentes os bispos
de Bragança-Miranda, Leiria, Lamego e Dili.
Em 1976 foi edificado o primeiro pavilhão da Casa dos Pastorinhos e foi
ampliada a torre sineira.
1977 foi o ano da comemoração do 60º aniversário das aparições em
Fátima e o Santuário dos Cerejais foi o ponto central das comemorações
na diocese de Bragança-Miranda.
seu desejo ao rei que logo pensou juntar o útil ao agradável: fez a vontade
à esposa e aproveitou o pretexto para construir uma fortificação militar nas
proximidades, dado que se tratava de um local estratégico para a
segurança do reino.
A administração da capela e dos seus folgados proventos determinados
por D. Dinis foi entregue aos frades beneditinos do mosteiro do Castro da
Avelãs, que se localiza a cerca de 30 km de distância, próximo a Bragança.
No reinado de D. João III, foi construída a catedral de Miranda, que passou
a ser a sede da diocese para quem passou a administração do santuário.
Durante todos estes anos, as actividades de culto foram promovidas pela
confraria que contava sempre com um mordomo castelhano, o que
confirma a grande influência que o santuário exerce do outro lado da
fronteira. Do lado espanhol o Santuário é designado por “La Ribeiriña”.
Apesar da grande quantidade de romeiros e da celebração anual das
grandes romarias, o templo chegou ao final do século XIX num estado de
apreciável degradação. Providencialmente surgiu um benemérito, próspero
emigrante no Brasil, natural de Castrelos, de seu nome António do Carmo
Pires.
5l-henrique.blogspot.pt/2013/06/alfandega-da-fe-cerejais-...
Este santuário está
implementado numa vasta
área consagrada ao culto
Mariano e constitui um pólo
de dinamização de
numerosas actividades de
espiritualidade, recolhimento
e apoio social. Na sua
génese, está a resposta das
populações do nordeste
transmontano à mensagem
de Fátima, através de uma
acção liderada por um
sacerdote natural da região: o
P. Manuel Joaquim Ochôa.
Começou a ser edificado em
1961. Para a sua construção
foi necessária a colaboração
de todo o povo de Cerejais,
homens e mulheres; eles com
quatrocentos carros de bois
de pedra e elas com o transporte de toda a água necessária à construção,
muita da qual foi transportada em cântaros, à cabeça.
Além da capela principal, fazem parte do conjunto do santuário:
l O Calvário (fig.1.1) com uma capelinha onde se encontra um conjunto
escultórico, em tamanho natural, que representa o encontro da Mãe
Dolorosa com o seu Divino Filho.
l Uma Via-sacra que percorre o caminho entre a Capela e o Calvário e
cujas cruzes foram esculpidas em granito da aldeia de Romeu.
Dois anos mais tarde, em 28 de Maio de 1967, celebrou-se a “festa dos
Bispos” como ficou conhecida a inauguração dos quinze Mistérios do
Rosário, que estão representados por outras tantas figuras esculpidas que
se distribuem à beira do caminho entre a capela e a Loca do Cabeço. Com
efeito, nas cerimónias desta inauguração, estiveram presentes os bispos
de Bragança-Miranda, Leiria, Lamego e Dili.
Em 1976 foi edificado o primeiro pavilhão da Casa dos Pastorinhos e foi
ampliada a torre sineira.
1977 foi o ano da comemoração do 60º aniversário das aparições em
Fátima e o Santuário dos Cerejais foi o ponto central das comemorações
na diocese de Bragança-Miranda.
seu desejo ao rei que logo pensou juntar o útil ao agradável: fez a vontade
à esposa e aproveitou o pretexto para construir uma fortificação militar nas
proximidades, dado que se tratava de um local estratégico para a
segurança do reino.
A administração da capela e dos seus folgados proventos determinados
por D. Dinis foi entregue aos frades beneditinos do mosteiro do Castro da
Avelãs, que se localiza a cerca de 30 km de distância, próximo a Bragança.
No reinado de D. João III, foi construída a catedral de Miranda, que passou
a ser a sede da diocese para quem passou a administração do santuário.
Durante todos estes anos, as actividades de culto foram promovidas pela
confraria que contava sempre com um mordomo castelhano, o que
confirma a grande influência que o santuário exerce do outro lado da
fronteira. Do lado espanhol o Santuário é designado por “La Ribeiriña”.
Apesar da grande quantidade de romeiros e da celebração anual das
grandes romarias, o templo chegou ao final do século XIX num estado de
apreciável degradação. Providencialmente surgiu um benemérito, próspero
emigrante no Brasil, natural de Castrelos, de seu nome António do Carmo
Pires.
5l-henrique.blogspot.pt/2013/06/alfandega-da-fe-cerejais-...
Stop motion video with sound
0:42 seconds
A stop motion video that illustrates the implementation of the message of the advertised product as well as the ideals of women onto a woman's back.
The back of a woman is what gives the body form, its delicacy and strength illustrate the ideals of Arab women.
In order to imprint the writing, I utilised henna. It is usually seen as a representation of femininity.
Pic taken during a trip to visit communities in Delhi benefitting from the support of the Young Health Programme.
The Young Health Programme -- a partnership between AstraZeneca, Plan and Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health -- aims to help young people improve their lifelong health.
In India it is focused on improving hygiene, infection and reproductive health in five settlement areas in Delhi. The Programme is being implemented by Plan India in partnership with the Community Aid and Sponsorship Programme (CASP).
Find out more about our work in India: bit.ly/AjPT0y
Photo by Paolo Black for the Young Health Programme
the garden stands ready but it isn't time to plant. olympus e-300 with meyer-optik gorlitz lydith 30mm f/3.5
A near deserted Victoria Park in Portsmouth three days prior to the implementation of a complete lockdown of the population of the UK in relation to the Coronavirus outbreak.
From Wikipedia -
Wookey Hole Caves is a show cave and tourist attraction in the village of Wookey Hole on the southern edge of the Mendip Hills near Wells in Somerset, England.
Wookey Hole cave was formed by the action of the River Axe on the limestone hills. Before emerging at Wookey Hole the water enters underground streams and passes through other caves such as Swildon's Hole and St Cuthbert's Swallet. After resurging, the waters of the River Axe are used in a handmade paper mill, the oldest extant in Britain, which began operations circa 1610, although a corn grinding mill operated there as early as 1086.
Nearby is the limestone Ebbor Gorge, a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) and a more tranquil spot than the busy Wookey Hole, which is itself an SSSI for both biological and geological reasons.
The cave is noted for the Witch of Wookey Hole – a roughly human shaped rock outcrop, reputedly turned to stone by a monk from Glastonbury. It is also the site of the first cave dives in Britain.
The caves, at a constant temperature of 11 °C (52 °F), have been used by humans for around 50,000 years. The low temperature means that the caves can be used for maturing Cheddar cheese.
History
Wookey is a corruption of the Celtic or Old English "Ogo" or "Ogof" which gave the early names for this cave of "Ochie" "Ochy". Hole is Anglo-Saxon for cave which is itself of Latin/Norman derivation. Therefore the name can be translated as cave, cave, cave.
Wookey Hole was occupied by humans in the Iron Age, while nearby Hyena Cave was occupied by Stone Age hunters. Badger Hole and Rhinoceros Hole are two dry caves on the slopes above the Wookey ravine near the Wookey Hole resurgence and contain in situ cave sediments laid down during the Ice Age.
In 1544 products of Roman lead working in the area were discovered. The lead mines across the Mendips have produced contamination of the water emerging from the underground caverns at Wookey Hole. The lead in the water is believed to have affected the quality of the paper produced.
Cave archaeology
Archaeological investigations were undertaken from 1859 to 1874 by William Boyd Dawkins, who moved to Somerset to study classics with the vicar of Wookey. On hearing of the discovery of bones by local workmen he led excavations in the area of the hyena den. His work led to the discovery of the first evidence for the use by Palaeolithic man in the Caves of the Mendip Hills.
Herbert E. Balch continued the work from 1904 to 1914, where he led excavations of the entrance passage (1904-15), Witch's Kitchen (Chamber 1) and Hell's Ladder (1926-1927) and the Badger Hole (1938-1954), where Roman coins from the 3rd century were discovered along with Aurignacian flint implements. The 1911 work found a 4 to 7 feet (1.2–2.1 m) of stratification, mostly dating from the Iron age and sealed into place by Romano-British artifacts. Finds included a silver coin of Marcia (124BC), pottery, weapons and tools, bronze ornaments, and Roman coins from Vespasian to Valentinian II.
E. J. Mason from 1946 to 1949, and G. R. Morgan in 1972 continued the work. Books by Dawkins and Balch are now prized items amongst those with an interest in cave archaeology.
Later work led by Edgar Kingsley Tratman (1899-1978) OBE DSc MD FSA explored the human occupation of the Rhinoceros hole, and showed that the fourth chamber of the great cave was a Romano-British cemetery.
During excavations in 1954-7 at Hole Ground, just outside the entrance to the cave, the foundations of a 1st century hut and Iron Age pottery were seen. These were covered by the foundations of Roman buildings, dating from the 1st to the late 4th century.
Exploration
The cave as far as the Third Chamber and side galleries has always been known. Prior to the construction of a dam at the resurgence to feed water to the paper mill downstream, two more chambers (the Fourth & Fifth) were accessible. Further upstream the way on lay underwater.
Diving was first tried by the Cave Diving Group under the leadership of Graham Balcombe in 1935. With equipment on loan from Siebe Gorman, he and Penelope ("Mossy") Powell penetrated 170 ft (51.8 m) into the cave, reaching "Chamber 7" using standard diving dress. The events marked the first successful cave dives in Britain.
Diving at Wookey resumed in early June 1946 when Balcombe used his home-made respirator and waterproof suit to explore the region between Resurgence and First Chamber, as well as the underground course of the river between Chamber 3 and Chamber 1. During these dives, the Romano-British remains were found and archaeological work dominated the early dives in the cave. The large Ninth Chamber was first entered on 24 April 1948 by Balcombe and Don Coase. Using this as an advance dive base, the Tenth and then the Eleventh Chambers were discovered. The way on, however, was too deep for divers breathing pure oxygen from a closed-circuit rebreather . Sadly, the cave claimed its first life on 9 April 1949 when Gordon Marriott lost his life returning from Chamber Nine. Another fatality occurred in 1981 when Keith Potter was drowned on a routine dive further upstream.
Further progress required apparatus which could overcome the depth limitation of breathing pure oxygen. Using an aqualung and swimming with fins, Bob Davies reached the bottom of Chamber 11 at 15 metres (49 ft) depth in clear water and discovered the 12th and 13th Chambers. Unfortunately, he got separated from his guideline and the other two divers in Chamber 11, ending up spending three hours trapped in Chamber 13 and had much trouble getting back to safety. Opinion hardened against the use of the short-duration aqualung in favour of longer-duration closed-circuit equipment. Likewise, the traditional approach of walking along the bottom was preferred over swimming.
Employing semi-closed circuit nitrogen-oxygen rebreathers, between 1957 and 1960 John Buxton and Oliver Wells (grandson of science fiction writer H. G. Wells) went on to reach the elbow of the sump upstream from Chamber 9 at a depth of 22 metres (72 ft). This was at a point known as "The Slot", the way on being too deep for the gas mixture they were breathing.
A six-year hiatus ensued while open circuit air diving became established, along with free-swimming and the use of neoprene wetsuits. The new generation of cave diver was now more mobile above- and under-water and able to dive deeper. Using this approach, Dave Savage was able to reach air surface in the 18th Chamber (Chambers did not have to have air spaces to be so named; they were the limits of each exploration) in May 1966. A brief lull in exploration occurred while the mess of guidelines laid from Chamber 9 was sorted out until John Parker progressed first to the large, dry, inlet passage of Chamber 20 and thence followed the River Axe upstream to Chamber 22 where the way on appeared to be lost.
Meanwhile, climbing operations in Chamber Nine found an abandoned outlet passage which terminated very close to the surface, as well as a dry overland route downstream though the higher levels of Chambers 8 to 6 as far as Chamber 5. These discoveries where used to enable the show cave to be extended into Chamber 9 and helping cave divers to start directly from here and bypassing the dive from Chamber 3.
Eventually, on 23 February 1976, Colin Edmunds found a way on in the static sump at the far end of Chamber 22. Controversially, he was beaten to the discovery of the magnificent active streamway of Chamber 24 by Geoff Yeadon and Oliver Statham a couple of days later. Edmunds returned with Martyn Farr on 27 February 1976 when the latter was able to dive from Chamber 24 into Chamber 25. To this day, Chamber 25 represents the furthest upstream air surface in Wookey Hole Cave. From here the River Axe rises up from a deep sump where progressive depth records for cave diving have been set: firstly by Farr (45m) in 1977, then Rob Parker (68m) in 1985, and finally by John Volanthen and Rick Stanton (76m) in 2004.
In 1996-1997 water samples were collected at various points throughout the caves and showed different chemical compositions. Results showed that the location of the "Unknown Junction", from where water flows to the Static Sump in Chamber 22 by a different route from the majority of the River Axe, is upstream of Sump 25.
Witch of Wookey Hole
The Witch of Wookey Hole is a stalagmite in the first chamber of the caves and the central character in an old English legend. The story has several different versions with the same basic features:
A man from Glastonbury is betrothed to a girl from Wookey. A witch living in Wookey Hole Caves curses the romance so that it fails. The man, now a monk, seeks revenge on this witch who—having been jilted herself—frequently spoils budding relationships. The monk stalks the witch into the cave and she hides in dark corner near one of the underground rivers. The monk blesses the water and splashes some of it at the dark parts of the cave. Catching the witch off guard, the monk splashes the water at the dark corner she is hiding in. The blessed water immediately petrifies the witch, and she remains in the cave to this day.
It was partly down to the legend of the witch that prompted TV's Most Haunted team to visit Wookey Hole Caves and Mill to explore the location in depth, searching for evidence of paranormal activity. The show, which aired on 10 March 2009, was the last episode transmitted in series eleven of the show's run on the satellite and cable TV channel Living.
In 2009 a new 'witch' was chosen by Wookey Hole Ltd amid much media interest. Carole Bohanan in the role of Carla Calamity was selected ahead of over 3,000 other applicants.
The current paper mill building, whose water wheel is powered by a small canal from the river, dates from around 1860 and is a Grade II-listed building. Unfortunately the production of handmade paper ceased in February 2008 after owner Gerry Cottle concluded there was no longer a market for the product, and therefore sold most of the historic machinery. Visitors to the site are still able to watch a short video of the paper made made from cotton. Other attractions include the dinosaur yard, a small museum about the cave and cave diving, a theatre with circus shows, House of mirrors and Penny arcades. Bear Shop.
The cave and mill were joined, after purchase, by Madame Tussauds in 1973 and operated together as a tourist attraction. The present owner is the former circus proprietor Gerry Cottle who purchased the site for around £6million.
At least one ghost, that of a drowned potholer, is said to haunt the cave. There are also uncanny powers associated with the Witch, all adding to the attraction's popularity with visitors.
The cave was used for the filming of episodes of the BBC TV series Doctor Who: the serial Revenge of the Cybermen (1975) starring Tom Baker. This has since been referenced in the comedy of The League of Gentlemen. The cave was also used in the filming of the British series "Robin of Sherwood" (1983).
On 1 August 2006, CNN reported that Barney, a Doberman Pinscher employed as a security dog at Wookey Hole, had destroyed parts of a valuable collection of teddy bears, including one which had belonged to Elvis Presley, which was estimated to be worth $75,000. The insurance company insuring the exhibition of stuffed animals had insisted on having guard dog protection. :“He just went berserk,” said Daniel Medley, general manager of Wookey Hole Caves near Wells, England, where hundreds of bears were chewed up Tuesday night by the six-year-old Doberman Pinscher named Barney. A security guard at the museum, Greg West, said he spent several minutes chasing Barney before wrestling the dog to the ground.
There are plans to open a new hotel as part of the complex in 2009.
In February 2009 Cottle turned the Victorian bowling green next to the caves into a crazy golf course without first obtaining planning permission.
In 1956, Olive Hodgkinson, a cave guide whose husband's family has owned the caves for over 500 years, was a contestant on What's My Line?
Some of the caves seen in the chamber in Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (film) were filmed at the Wookey Hole Caves.
Witch's Cavern (chamber 2) was used as the set for Herne's cavern in the television series Robin of Sherwood.
The Dr Who serial Revenge of the Cybermen, featuring Tom Baker as the Doctor, was filmed in Wookey Hole Caves in 1974 and 1975.
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry sits with State Department Chief of Staff Jon Finer at the Palais Coburg Hotel in Vienna, Austria, on January 16, 2016, as they conduct final negotiations before the implementation of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action outlining the shape of Iran's nuclear program. [State Department Photo/Public Domain]
Sherlock.
This almost deserted town was a busy hub in early years. The Pinnaroo railway came through here in 1906 and this was an important siding as it was the nearest to the town of Karoonda to its north. This importance did not last as the railway line went through to Karoonda in March of 1912. The Hundred of Sherlock was gazetted in 1899 and the town was proclaimed in 1906 and named after a friend of Governor Buxton. There was soon a Post office and general store in Sherlock. Near the town was a government bore for a water supply to residents, trains and farms although most farms soon had their own bores. The Baptists were strong in this district and a wooden and iron Baptist church was built in 1908. In 1912 this was replaced with the fine stone edifice that still stands in Sherlock. A government primary school opened in Sherlock in the old Baptist church in 1911 and it moved into the stone Baptist church in 1912. Early crops at Sherlock produced high yields. Some got 18 bushels per acre but this soon fell to 7 or 8 bushel per acre in a good year. Although Sherlock was a reasonably prosperous district its stone institute and hall was not completed until 1927 as the Baptist Church was always used for town meetings, polling booth functions etc. In 1930 the government built a fine stone and brick school room at Sherlock. That building closed as a school in 1970, ten years after other schools in the district closed to support Coomandook Area School. It then became a school camp for city schools but it is now a private residence. The District Council of Peake was formed in 1911 and it covered the towns of Moorlands, Sherlock, Peake, Ki Ki and Yumali. The first District Clerk lived for decades in Sherlock and when new Council Chambers were built in 1973 they were located in Sherlock instead of Peake. The District Council of Peake closed in 1997 when part of it was amalgamated into the Coorong Council with Meningie, Coonalpyn etc. One highlight for the locals was the official Vice Regal visit to Sherlock by the Governor and his party in 1962. Like some other Mallee towns Sherlock and Moorlands (also Coomandook, Yumali etc) all supervised Italian prisoners of war during World War Two. Labour was short and these prisoners of war were important to maintain agricultural production. Today Sherlock has no public services and few residents.
Looking east from the Jay County Fairgrounds.
I squeeze a lot from this view.
Please check out the fun image next door. >>>>
Bosch India Csr
Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) has acquired new dimensions in the recent years.
CSR Projects implemented by trinitycarefoundation.org/csrprogrammesindia | : flic.kr/s/aHsk8kEmnC | For CSR partnership, Write to - support@trinitycarefoundation.org |
NSW Rural Fire service is suffering a slow descent into madness via its pathetic Covid 19 vaccination mandate implemented via Service Standard 7.1.9
TV was supposed to enhance our lives. Instead, we got MAFS full of Bigpox recipients
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Author: Andreas Nierhaus, Curator of Architecture/Wien Museum
Last updated January 2014
Architecture in Vienna
Vienna's 2,000-year history is present in a unique density in the cityscape. The layout of the center dates back to the Roman city and medieval road network. Romanesque and Gothic churches characterize the streets and squares as well as palaces and mansions of the baroque city of residence. The ring road is an expression of the modern city of the 19th century, in the 20th century extensive housing developments set accents in the outer districts. Currently, large-scale urban development measures are implemented; distinctive buildings of international star architects complement the silhouette of the city.
Due to its function as residence of the emperor and European power center, Vienna for centuries stood in the focus of international attention, but it was well aware of that too. As a result, developed an outstanding building culture, and still today on a worldwide scale only a few cities can come up with a comparable density of high-quality architecture. For several years now, Vienna has increased its efforts to connect with its historical highlights and is drawing attention to itself with some spectacular new buildings. The fastest growing city in the German-speaking world today most of all in residential construction is setting standards. Constants of the Viennese architecture are respect for existing structures, the palpability of historical layers and the dialogue between old and new.
Culmination of medieval architecture: the Stephansdom
The oldest architectural landmark of the city is St. Stephen's Cathedral. Under the rule of the Habsburgs, defining the face of the city from the late 13th century until 1918 in a decisive way, the cathedral was upgraded into the sacral monument of the political ambitions of the ruling house. The 1433 completed, 137 meters high southern tower, by the Viennese people affectionately named "Steffl", is a masterpiece of late Gothic architecture in Europe. For decades he was the tallest stone structure in Europe, until today he is the undisputed center of the city.
The baroque residence
Vienna's ascension into the ranks of the great European capitals began in Baroque. Among the most important architects are Johann Bernhard Fischer von Erlach and Johann Lucas von Hildebrandt. Outside the city walls arose a chain of summer palaces, including the garden Palais Schwarzenberg (1697-1704) as well as the Upper and Lower Belvedere of Prince Eugene of Savoy (1714-22). Among the most important city palaces are the Winter Palace of Prince Eugene (1695-1724, now a branch of the Belvedere) and the Palais Daun-Kinsky (auction house in Kinsky 1713-19). The emperor himself the Hofburg had complemented by buildings such as the Imperial Library (1722-26) and the Winter Riding School (1729-34). More important, however, for the Habsburgs was the foundation of churches and monasteries. Thus arose before the city walls Fischer von Erlach's Karlskirche (1714-39), which with its formal and thematic complex show façade belongs to the major works of European Baroque. In colored interior rooms like that of St. Peter's Church (1701-22), the contemporary efforts for the synthesis of architecture, painting and sculpture becomes visible.
Upgrading into metropolis: the ring road time (Ringstraßenzeit)
Since the Baroque, reflections on extension of the hopelessly overcrowed city were made, but only Emperor Franz Joseph ordered in 1857 the demolition of the fortifications and the connection of the inner city with the suburbs. 1865, the Ring Road was opened. It is as the most important boulevard of Europe an architectural and in terms of urban development achievement of the highest rank. The original building structure is almost completely preserved and thus conveys the authentic image of a metropolis of the 19th century. The public representational buildings speak, reflecting accurately the historicism, by their style: The Greek Antique forms of Theophil Hansen's Parliament (1871-83) stood for democracy, the Renaissance of the by Heinrich Ferstel built University (1873-84) for the flourishing of humanism, the Gothic of the Town Hall (1872-83) by Friedrich Schmidt for the medieval civic pride.
Dominating remained the buildings of the imperial family: Eduard van der Nüll's and August Sicardsburg's Opera House (1863-69), Gottfried Semper's and Carl Hasenauer's Burgtheater (1874-88), their Museum of Art History and Museum of Natural History (1871-91) and the Neue (New) Hofburg (1881-1918 ). At the same time the ring road was the preferred residential area of mostly Jewish haute bourgeoisie. With luxurious palaces the families Ephrussi, Epstein or Todesco made it clear that they had taken over the cultural leadership role in Viennese society. In the framework of the World Exhibition of 1873, the new Vienna presented itself an international audience. At the ring road many hotels were opened, among them the Hotel Imperial and today's Palais Hansen Kempinski.
Laboratory of modernity: Vienna around 1900
Otto Wagner's Postal Savings Bank (1903-06) was one of the last buildings in the Ring road area Otto Wagner's Postal Savings Bank (1903-06), which with it façade, liberated of ornament, and only decorated with "functional" aluminum buttons and the glass banking hall now is one of the icons of modern architecture. Like no other stood Otto Wagner for the dawn into the 20th century: His Metropolitan Railway buildings made the public transport of the city a topic of architecture, the church of the Psychiatric hospital at Steinhofgründe (1904-07) is considered the first modern church.
With his consistent focus on the function of a building ("Something impractical can not be beautiful"), Wagner marked a whole generation of architects and made Vienna the laboratory of modernity: in addition to Joseph Maria Olbrich, the builder of the Secession (1897-98) and Josef Hoffmann, the architect of the at the western outskirts located Purkersdorf Sanatorium (1904) and founder of the Vienna Workshop (Wiener Werkstätte, 1903) is mainly to mention Adolf Loos, with the Loos House at the square Michaelerplatz (1909-11) making architectural history. The extravagant marble cladding of the business zone stands in maximal contrast, derived from the building function, to the unadorned facade above, whereby its "nudity" became even more obvious - a provocation, as well as his culture-critical texts ("Ornament and Crime"), with which he had greatest impact on the architecture of the 20th century. Public contracts Loos remained denied. His major works therefore include villas, apartment facilities and premises as the still in original state preserved Tailor salon Knize at Graben (1910-13) and the restored Loos Bar (1908-09) near the Kärntner Straße (passageway Kärntner Durchgang).
Between the Wars: International Modern Age and social housing
After the collapse of the monarchy in 1918, Vienna became capital of the newly formed small country of Austria. In the heart of the city, the architects Theiss & Jaksch built 1931-32 the first skyscraper in Vienna as an exclusive residential address (Herrengasse - alley 6-8). To combat the housing shortage for the general population, the social democratic city government in a globally unique building program within a few years 60,000 apartments in hundreds of apartment buildings throughout the city area had built, including the famous Karl Marx-Hof by Karl Ehn (1925-30). An alternative to the multi-storey buildings with the 1932 opened International Werkbundsiedlung was presented, which was attended by 31 architects from Austria, Germany, France, Holland and the USA and showed models for affordable housing in greenfield areas. With buildings of Adolf Loos, André Lurçat, Richard Neutra, Gerrit Rietveld, the Werkbundsiedlung, which currently is being restored at great expense, is one of the most important documents of modern architecture in Austria.
Modernism was also expressed in significant Villa buildings: The House Beer (1929-31) by Josef Frank exemplifies the refined Wiener living culture of the interwar period, while the house Stonborough-Wittgenstein (1926-28, today Bulgarian Cultural Institute), built by the philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein together with the architect Paul Engelmann for his sister Margarete, by its aesthetic radicalism and mathematical rigor represents a special case within contemporary architecture.
Expulsion, war and reconstruction
After the "Anschluss (Annexation)" to the German Reich in 1938, numerous Jewish builders, architects (female and male ones), who had been largely responsible for the high level of Viennese architecture, have been expelled from Austria. During the Nazi era, Vienna remained largely unaffected by structural transformations, apart from the six flak towers built for air defense of Friedrich Tamms (1942-45), made of solid reinforced concrete which today are present as memorials in the cityscape.
The years after the end of World War II were characterized by the reconstruction of the by bombs heavily damaged city. The architecture of those times was marked by aesthetic pragmatism, but also by the attempt to connect with the period before 1938 and pick up on current international trends. Among the most important buildings of the 1950s are Roland Rainer's City Hall (1952-58), the by Oswald Haerdtl erected Wien Museum at Karlsplatz (1954-59) and the 21er Haus of Karl Schwanzer (1958-62).
The youngsters come
Since the 1960s, a young generation was looking for alternatives to the moderate modernism of the reconstruction years. With visionary designs, conceptual, experimental and above all temporary architectures, interventions and installations, Raimund Abraham, Günther Domenig, Eilfried Huth, Hans Hollein, Walter Pichler and the groups Coop Himmelb(l)au, Haus-Rucker-Co and Missing Link rapidly got international attention. Although for the time being it was more designed than built, was the influence on the postmodern and deconstructivist trends of the 1970s and 1980s also outside Austria great. Hollein's futuristic "Retti" candle shop at Charcoal Market/Kohlmarkt (1964-65) and Domenig's biomorphic building of the Central Savings Bank in Favoriten (10th district of Vienna - 1975-79) are among the earliest examples, later Hollein's Haas-Haus (1985-90), the loft conversion Falkestraße (1987/88) by Coop Himmelb(l)au or Domenig's T Center (2002-04) were added. Especially Domenig, Hollein, Coop Himmelb(l)au and the architects Ortner & Ortner (ancient members of Haus-Rucker-Co) by orders from abroad the new Austrian and Viennese architecture made a fixed international concept.
MuseumQuarter and Gasometer
Since the 1980s, the focus of building in Vienna lies on the compaction of the historic urban fabric that now as urban habitat of high quality no longer is put in question. Among the internationally best known projects is the by Ortner & Ortner planned MuseumsQuartier in the former imperial stables (competition 1987, 1998-2001), which with institutions such as the MUMOK - Museum of Modern Art Foundation Ludwig, the Leopold Museum, the Kunsthalle Wien, the Architecture Center Vienna and the Zoom Children's Museum on a wordwide scale is under the largest cultural complexes. After controversies in the planning phase, here an architectural compromise between old and new has been achieved at the end, whose success as an urban stage with four million visitors (2012) is overwhelming.
The dialogue between old and new, which has to stand on the agenda of building culture of a city that is so strongly influenced by history, also features the reconstruction of the Gasometer in Simmering by Coop Himmelb(l)au, Wilhelm Holzbauer, Jean Nouvel and Manfred Wehdorn (1999-2001). Here was not only created new housing, but also a historical industrial monument reinterpreted into a signal in the urban development area.
New Neighborhood
In recent years, the major railway stations and their surroundings moved into the focus of planning. Here not only necessary infrastructural measures were taken, but at the same time opened up spacious inner-city residential areas and business districts. Among the prestigious projects are included the construction of the new Vienna Central Station, started in 2010 with the surrounding office towers of the Quartier Belvedere and the residential and school buildings of the Midsummer quarter (Sonnwendviertel). Europe's largest wooden tower invites here for a spectacular view to the construction site and the entire city. On the site of the former North Station are currently being built 10,000 homes and 20,000 jobs, on that of the Aspangbahn station is being built at Europe's greatest Passive House settlement "Euro Gate", the area of the North Western Railway Station is expected to be developed from 2020 for living and working. The largest currently under construction residential project but can be found in the north-eastern outskirts, where in Seaside Town Aspern till 2028 living and working space for 40,000 people will be created.
In one of the "green lungs" of Vienna, the Prater, 2013, the WU campus was opened for the largest University of Economics of Europe. Around the central square spectacular buildings of an international architect team from Great Britain, Japan, Spain and Austria are gathered that seem to lead a sometimes very loud conversation about the status quo of contemporary architecture (Hitoshi Abe, BUSarchitektur, Peter Cook, Zaha Hadid, NO MAD Arquitectos, Carme Pinós).
Flying high
International is also the number of architects who have inscribed themselves in the last few years with high-rise buildings in the skyline of Vienna and make St. Stephen's a not always unproblematic competition. Visible from afar is Massimiliano Fuksas' 138 and 127 meters high elegant Twin Tower at Wienerberg (1999-2001). The monolithic, 75-meter-high tower of the Hotel Sofitel at the Danube Canal by Jean Nouvel (2007-10), on the other hand, reacts to the particular urban situation and stages in its top floor new perspectives to the historical center on the other side.
Also at the water stands Dominique Perrault's DC Tower (2010-13) in the Danube City - those high-rise city, in which since the start of construction in 1996, the expansion of the city north of the Danube is condensed symbolically. Even in this environment, the slim and at the same time striking vertically folded tower of Perrault is beyond all known dimensions; from its Sky Bar, from spring 2014 on you are able to enjoy the highest view of Vienna. With 250 meters, the tower is the tallest building of Austria and almost twice as high as the St. Stephen's Cathedral. Vienna, thus, has acquired a new architectural landmark which cannot be overlooked - whether it also has the potential to become a landmark of the new Vienna, only time will tell. The architectural history of Vienna, where European history is presence and new buildings enter into an exciting and not always conflict-free dialogue with a great and outstanding architectural heritage, in any case has yet to offer exciting chapters.
Info: The folder "Architecture: From Art Nouveau to the Presence" is available at the Vienna Tourist Board and can be downloaded on www.wien.info/media/files/guide-architecture-in-wien.pdf.
St. Andrew's Church, Darjeeling. Built- 1843, Rebuilt- 1873
Darjeeling is a town and a municipality in the Indian state of West Bengal. It is located in the Mahabharat Range or Lesser Himalaya at an elevation of 2,042.2 m. It is noted for its tea industry and the Darjeeling Himalayan Railway, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Darjeeling is the headquarters of Darjeeling district which has a partially autonomous status within the state of West Bengal.
The development of the town dates back to the mid-19th century, when the colonial British administration set up a sanatorium and a military depot. Subsequently, extensive tea plantations were established in the region, and tea growers developed hybrids of black tea and created new fermentation techniques. The resultant distinctive Darjeeling tea is internationally recognised and ranks among the most popular of the black teas.
The Darjeeling Himalayan Railway connects the town with the plains and has one of the few steam locomotives still in service in India.
Darjeeling has several British-style public schools, which attract pupils from India and neighbouring countries. The varied culture of the town reflects its diverse demographic milieu consisting of Nepalis, Bhutia, Lepcha and other mainland Indian ethno-linguistic groups. Darjeeling, with its neighbouring town of Kalimpong, was a centre of the Gorkhaland movement (Separate State demand within India) in the 1980s. The town's fragile ecology has been threatened by a rising demand for environmental resources, stemming from growing tourist traffic and poorly planned urbanisation.
TOPONOMY
The name Darjeeling comes from the Tibetan word dorje, meaning the thunderbolt sceptre of the Hindu diety Indra, and ling, a place or land.
HISTORY
The history of Darjeeling is intertwined with that of Sikkim, Nepal, British India and Bhutan. Until the early 19th century, the hilly area around Darjeeling was controlled by the kingdom of Sikkim, while the plains around Siliguri were intermittently occupied by the Kingdom of Nepal, with settlement consisting of a few villages of Lepcha and Kirati people. The Chogyal of Sikkim had been engaged in unsuccessful warfare against the Gorkhas of Nepal. From 1780, the Gorkhas made several attempts to capture the entire region of Darjeeling. By the beginning of 19th century, they had overrun Sikkim as far eastward as the Teesta River and had conquered and annexed the Terai. In the meantime, the British were engaged in preventing the Gorkhas from overrunning the whole of the northern frontier. The Anglo-Gorkha war broke out in 1814, which resulted in the defeat of the Gorkhas and subsequently led to the signing of the Sugauli Treaty in 1815. According to the treaty, Nepal had to cede all those territories which the Gorkhas had annexed from the Chogyal of Sikkim to the British East India Company (i.e. the area between Mechi River and Teesta River). Later in 1817, through the Treaty of Titalia, the British East India Company reinstated the Chogyal of Sikkim, restored all the tracts of land between the River Mechi and the River Teesta to the Chogyal of Sikkim and guaranteed his sovereignty.In 1828, a delegation of the British East India Company (BEIC) officials on its way to the Nepal-Sikkim border stayed in Darjeeling and decided that the region was a suitable site for a sanatorium for British soldiers. The company negotiated a lease of the area west of the Mahananda River from the Chogyal of Sikkim in 1835. In 1849, the BEIC director Arthur Campbell and the explorer and botanist Joseph Dalton Hooker were imprisoned in the region by the Sikkim Chogyal. The BEIC sent a force to free them. Continued friction between the BEIC and the Sikkim authorities resulted in the annexation of 1,700 km2 of territory by the British in 1850. In 1864, the Bhutanese rulers and the British signed the Treaty of Sinchula that ceded the passes leading through the hills and Kalimpong to the British. Further discord between Sikkim and the British resulted in a war, culminating in the signing of a treaty and the annexation by the British of the area east of the Teesta River in 1865. By 1866, Darjeeling district had assumed its current shape and size, covering an area of 3,200 km2. During the British Raj, Darjeeling's temperate climate led to its development as a hill station for British residents seeking to escape the summer heat of the plains. The development of Darjeeling as a sanatorium and health resort proceeded briskly. Arthur Campbell, a surgeon with the Company, and Lieutenant Robert Napier were responsible for establishing a hill station there. Campbell's efforts to develop the station, attract immigrants to cultivate the slopes and stimulate trade resulted in a hundredfold increase in the population of Darjeeling between 1835 and 1849. The first road connecting the town with the plains was constructed between 1839 and 1842. In 1848, a military depot was set up for British soldiers, and the town became a municipality in 1850. Commercial cultivation of tea in the district began in 1856, and induced a number of British planters to settle there. Darjeeling became the formal summer capital of the Bengal Presidency after 1864. Scottish missionaries undertook the construction of schools and welfare centres for the British residents, laying the foundation for Darjeeling's notability as a centre of education. The opening of the Darjeeling Himalayan Railway in 1881 further hastened the development of the region. In 1899, Darjeeling was rocked by major landslides that caused severe damage to the town and the native population.Under British rule, the Darjeeling area was initially a "Non-Regulation District", a scheme of administration applicable to economically less advanced districts in the British Raj; acts and regulations of the British Raj did not automatically apply to the district in line with rest of the country. In 1919, the area was declared a "backward tract". During the Indian independence movement, the Non-cooperation Movement spread through the tea estates of Darjeeling. There was also a failed assassination attempt by revolutionaries on Sir John Anderson, the Governor of Bengal in 1934. Subsequently, during the 1940s, Communist activists continued the nationalist movement against the British by mobilising the plantation workers and the peasants of the district. Socio-economic problems of the region that had not been addressed during British rule continued to linger and were reflected in a representation made to the Constituent Assembly of India in 1947, which highlighted the issues of regional autonomy and Nepali nationality in Darjeeling and adjacent areas. After the independence of India in 1947, Darjeeling was merged with the state of West Bengal. A separate district of Darjeeling was established consisting of the hill towns of Darjeeling, Kurseong, Kalimpong and some parts of the Terai region. While the hill population comprised mainly ethnic Nepalis, the plains harboured a large ethnic Bengali population who were refugees from the Partition of India. A cautious and non-receptive response by the West Bengal government to most demands of the ethnic Nepali population led to increased calls, in the 1950s and 1960s, for Darjeeling's autonomy and for the recognition of the Nepali language; the state government acceded to the latter demand in 1961.The creation of a new state of Sikkim in 1975, along with the reluctance of the Government of India to recognise Nepali as an official language under the Constitution of India, brought the issue of a separate state of Gorkhaland to the forefront. Agitation for a separate state continued through the 1980s, included violent protests during the 1986–88 period. The agitation ceased only after an agreement between the government and the Gorkha National Liberation Front (GNLF), resulting in the establishment of an elected body in 1988 called the Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council (DGHC), which received autonomy to govern the district. Though Darjeeling became peaceful, the issue of a separate state lingered, fuelled in part by the lack of comprehensive economic development in the region even after the formation of the DGHC. New protests erupted in 2008–09, but both the Union and State governments rejected Gorkha Janmukti Morcha's (GJM) demand for a separate state. In July 2011, a pact was signed between GJM, the Government of West Bengal and the Government of India which includes the formation of a new autonomous, elected Gorkhaland Territorial Administration (GTA), a hill council endowed with more powers than its predecessor Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council.[
GEOGRAPHY
Darjeeling is the main town of the Sadar subdivision and also the headquarters of the district. It is located at an elevation of 2,000 m in the Darjeeling Himalayan hill region on the Darjeeling-Jalapahar range that originates in the south from Ghum. The range is Y-shaped with the base resting at Katapahar and Jalapahar and two arms diverging north of the Observatory Hill. The north-eastern arm dips suddenly and ends in the Lebong spur, while the north-western arm passes through North Point and ends in the valley near Tukver Tea Estate. The hills are nestled within higher peaks and the snow-clad Himalayan ranges tower over the town in the distance. Kanchenjunga, the world's third-highest peak, 8,598 m high, is the most prominent mountain visible. In days clear of clouds, Nepal's Mount Everest, 8,850 m high, can be seen.
The hills of Darjeeling are part of the Mahabharat Range or Lesser Himalaya. The soil is chiefly composed of sandstone and conglomerate formations, which are the solidified and upheaved detritus of the great range of Himalaya. However, the soil is often poorly consolidated (the permeable sediments of the region do not retain water between rains) and is not considered suitable for agriculture. The area has steep slopes and loose topsoil, leading to frequent landslides during the monsoons. According to the Bureau of Indian Standards, the town falls under seismic zone-IV, (on a scale of I to V, in order of increasing proneness to earthquakes) near the convergent boundary of the Indian and the Eurasian tectonic plates and is subject to frequent earthquakes.
FLORA AND FAUNA
Darjeeling is a part of the Eastern Himalayan zoo-geographic zone. Flora around Darjeeling comprises sal, oak, semi-evergreen, temperate and alpine forests. Dense evergreen forests of sal and oak lie around the town, where a wide variety of rare orchids are found. The Lloyd's Botanical Garden preserves common and rare species of plants, while the Padmaja Naidu Himalayan Zoological Park specialises in conserving and breeding endangered Himalayan species. The town of Darjeeling and surrounding region face deforestation due to increasing demand for wood fuel and timber, as well as air pollution from increasing vehicular traffic.
Wildlife in the district is protected by the wildlife wing of the West Bengal Forest Department. The fauna found in Darjeeling includes several species of ducks, teals, plovers and gulls that pass Darjeeling while migrating to and from Tibet. Small mammals found in the region include civets, mongooses and badgers. The nearby Jaldapara National Park consists of semi-evergreen and sal forests. Animals found here include the one-horned rhinoceros, elephant, tiger, leopard and hog deer, while the main bird species include the Bengal florican and herons. As of 2009, work was in progress for setting up a conservation centre for red pandas in Darjeeling.
CLIMATE
Darjeeling has a temperate climate (Köppen: Cwb, subtropical highland climate) with wet summers caused by monsoon rains. The annual mean maximum temperature is 15.98 °C while the mean minimum temperature is 8.9 °C, with monthly mean temperatures range from 5 to 17 °C. The lowest temperature recorded was −24 °C on 11 February 1905. The average annual precipitation is 309.2 cm, with an average of 126 days of rain in a year. The highest rainfall occurs in July. The heavy and concentrated rainfall that is experienced in the region, aggravated by deforestation and haphazard planning, often causes devastating landslides, leading to loss of life and property.
CIVIL ADMINISTRATION
The Darjeeling urban agglomeration consists of Darjeeling Municipality and the Pattabong Tea Garden. Established in 1850, the Darjeeling municipality maintains the civic administration of the town, covering an area of 10.57 km2 The municipality consists of a board of councillors elected from each of the 32 wards of Darjeeling town as well as a few members nominated by the state government. The board of councillors elects a chairman from among its elected members; the chairman is the executive head of the municipality. The Gorkha Janmukti Morcha (GJMM) holds power in the municipality As of 2011.
From 1988 to 2012, the Gorkha-dominated hill areas of Darjeeling district was under the jurisdiction of the Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council (DGHC). In 2012, the DGHC was replaced by the Gorkhaland Territorial Administration (GTA). The elected members of this body are authorised to manage certain affairs of the hills, including education, health and tourism. Law and order in Darjeeling town comes under the jurisdiction of the district police force, which is a part of the West Bengal Police; a Deputy Superintendent of Police oversees the town's security and law affairs. Darjeeling municipality area has two police stations at Darjeeling and Jorebungalow.
UTILITIES
Natural springs in the Senchal Range provide most of Darjeeling's water supply. Water collected is routed through stone conduits to two lakes that were constructed in 1910 and 1932, from where it is piped to the town after purification at the Jorebungalow filtration plant. During the dry season, when water supplied by springs is insufficient, water is pumped from Khong Khola, a nearby small perennial stream. There is a steadily widening gap between water supply and demand; just over 50% of the town's households are connected to the municipal water supply system. Various efforts made to augment the water supply, including the construction of a third storage reservoir in 1984, have failed to yield desired results.
The town has an underground sewage system, covering about 40% of the town area, that collects domestic waste and conveys it to septic tanks for disposal. Solid waste is disposed of in a nearby dumping ground, which also houses the town's crematorium. Doorstep collection of garbage and segregation of biodegradable and non-biodegradable waste have been implemented since 2003. Vermicomposting of vegetable waste is carried out with the help of non-governmental organisations. In June 2009, in order to reduce waste, the municipality proposed the ban of plastic carry bags and sachets in the town.
Darjeeling got from 1897 up to the early 1990s hydroelectricity from the nearby Sidrapong Hydel Power Station, such being the first town in India supplied with hydropower. Today, electricity is supplied by the West Bengal State Electricity Board from other places. The town often suffers from power outages and the electrical supply voltage is unstable, making voltage stabilisers popular with many households. Almost all of the primary schools are now maintained by Darjeeling Gorkha Autonomous Hill Council. The total length of all types of roads within the municipal area is around 134 km The West Bengal Fire Service provides emergency services for the town.
ECONOMY
The two most significant contributors to Darjeeling's economy are tourism and the tea industry. Darjeeling tea, due to the unique agro-climatic conditions of Darjeeling, has a distinctive natural flavour, is internationally reputed and recognised as a geographical indicator. Darjeeling produces 7% of India's tea output, approximately 9,000,000 kilograms every year. The tea industry has faced competition in recent years from tea produced in other parts of India as well as other countries like Nepal. Widespread concerns about labour disputes, worker layoffs and closing of estates have affected investment and production. Several tea estates are being run on a workers' cooperative model, while others are being planned for conversion into tourist resorts. More than 60% of workers in the tea gardens are women. Besides tea, the most widely cultivated crops include maize, millets, paddy, cardamom, potato and ginger.
Darjeeling had become an important tourist destination as early as 1860. It is reported to be the only location in eastern India that witnesses large numbers of foreign tourists. It is also a popular filming destination for Bollywood and Bengali cinema. Satyajit Ray shot his film Kanchenjungha (1962) here, and his Feluda series story, Darjeeling Jomjomaat was also set in the town. Bollywood movies Aradhana (1969), Main Hoon Na (2004), and more recently Barfi! (2012) have been filmed here. Tourist inflow into Darjeeling has been affected by the political instability in the region, and agitations in the 1980s and 2000s have hit the tourism industry hard.
TRANSPORT
Darjeeling can be reached by the 88 km long Darjeeling Himalayan Railway from New Jalpaiguri, or by National Highway 55, from Siliguri, 77 km away. The Darjeeling Himalayan Railway is a 600 mm narrow-gauge railway that was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1999 for being "an outstanding example of the influence of an innovative transportation system on the social and economic development of a multi-cultural region, which was to serve as a model for similar developments in many parts of the world", becoming only the second railway in the world to have this honour. Bus services and hired vehicles connect Darjeeling with Siliguri and Darjeeling has road connections with Bagdogra, Gangtok and Kathmandu and the neighbouring towns of Kurseong and Kalimpong. However, road and railway communications often get disrupted in the monsoons because of landslides. The nearest airport is Bagdogra Airport, located 90 km from Darjeeling. Within the town, people usually traverse by walking. Residents also use two-wheelers and hired taxis for travelling short distances. The Darjeeling Ropeway, functional since 1968, was closed in 2003 after an accident killed four tourists. It was proposed to be reopened in 2007, and finally opened in February 2012.
DEMOGRAPHICS
According to provisional results of 2011 census of India, Darjeeling urban agglomeration has a population of 132,016, out of which 65,839 were males and 66,177 were females. The sex ratio is 1,005 females per 1,000 males. The 0–6 years population is 7,382. Effective literacy rate for the population older than 6 years is 93.17 per cent.
According to the 2001 census, the Darjeeling urban agglomeration, with an area of 12.77 km2 had a population of 109,163, while the municipal area had a population of 107,530. The population density of the municipal area was 10,173 per km2. The sex ratio was 1,017 females per 1,000 males, which was higher than the national average of 933 females per 1000 males. The three largest religions were Hinduism, Buddhism and Christianity, in that order. The majority of the populace are Gorkhas of ethnic Nepali background. Indigenous ethnic groups include the Limbu, Rai, Magars, Gurung, Tamangs, Lepchas, Bhutias, Sherpas and Newars. Other communities that inhabit Darjeeling include the Marwaris, Anglo-Indians, Chinese, Biharis, Tibetans and Bengali. The most commonly spoken languages are Nepali, Hindi, Bengali and English.
Darjeeling has seen a significant growth in its population, its decadal growth rate being 47% between 1991 and 2001. The colonial town had been designed for a population of only 10,000, and subsequent growth has created extensive infrastructural and environmental problems. The district's forests and other natural wealth have been adversely affected by an ever-growing population. Environmental degradation, including denudation of the surrounding hills has adversely affected Darjeeling's appeal as a tourist destination.The official language of West Bengal is Bengali, additional official languages in Darjeeling are English and Nepali.
CULTURE
Apart from the major religious festivals of Dashain (Durga puja), Tihar (Diwali) and Christmas the diverse ethnic populace of the town celebrates several local festivals. The Lepchas and Bhutias celebrate new year in January, while Tibetans celebrate their new year, Losar, in February–March. The birthday of the Buddha is celebrated in mid-June with processions. Darjeeling Carnival, initiated by a civil society movement known as The Darjeeling Initiative, is a ten-day carnival held every year during the winter with portrayal of the Darjeeling Hill's musical and cultural heritage as its central theme.
A popular food in Darjeeling is the Nepalese and Tibetan momo, a steamed dumpling containing meat cooked in a doughy wrapping and served with clear soup and achar. A form of Tibetan noodle called thukpa, served in soup form is also popular. Other commonly eaten dishes include alu dum, a potato preparation, and shaphalay, Tibetan bread stuffed with meat. Fermented foods and beverages are consumed by a large percentage of the population. Fermented foods include preparations of soybean, bamboo shoots, milk and Sel roti, which is made from rice. Tea is the most popular beverage, the Tibetan version is also drunk. Alcoholic beverages include Tongba, Jnaard and Chhaang, variations of a local beer made from fermenting finger millet.
Colonial architecture characterises many buildings in Darjeeling, exemplified by several mock Tudor residences, Gothic churches, the Raj Bhawan, Planters' Club and various educational institutions. Buddhist monasteries showcase the pagoda style architecture. Darjeeling is regarded as a centre of music and a niche for musicians and music admirers. Singing and playing musical instruments is a common pastime among the resident population, who take pride in the traditions and role of music in cultural life.
Darjeeling also has a Peace Pagoda built in 1992 by the Japanese Buddhist organisation Nipponzan Myohoji.
EDUCATION
There are 52 primary schools, 21 high schools and 4 colleges in the town. Darjeeling's schools are either run by the state government or by private and religious organisations. Schools mainly use English and Nepali as their media of instruction, although there is the option to learn the national language Hindi and the official state language Bengali. The schools are either affiliated with the ICSE, the CBSE, or the West Bengal Board of Secondary Education. Having been a summer retreat for the British in India, Darjeeling became the place of choice for the establishment of public schools on the model of Eton, Harrow and Rugby, allowing the children of British officials to obtain an exclusive education. Institutions such as Mount Hermon School, St. Robert's H.S. School, St. Joseph's College (School Dept.), Loreto Convent and St. Paul's School are renowned as centres of educational excellence.
Darjeeling has four colleges — St. Joseph's College, Southfield College (earlier known as Loreto College), Darjeeling Government College and Sri Ramakrishna B.T. College — all affiliated to the University of North Bengal in Siliguri.
WIKIPEDIA
Kibati camp is between the government forces postions and the CNDP rebels, about a kilometer separates them.
Through our implementing partner Solidarites we started the distribution of plastic sheets, blankets, jerrycans, soap, and cooking sets to thousands in Kibati; these are essential survival items that will ward off diseases such as malaria, respiratory infections, cholera, diarrhea, etc. We aim to serve 3,000 families.
At the same time we had measles vaccinations continue for 13,000 children in Kibati; like cholera, measles risks spreading rapidly during large population movement and is a major child killer
Read more: www.europarl.europa.eu/portal/en
This photo is free to use under Creative Commons licenses and must be credited: "© European Union 2016 - European Parliament".
(Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives CreativeCommons licenses creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).
For bigger HR files please contact: webcom-flickr(AT)europarl.europa.eu
When one's neck or back plays up its the pleasurable pain that these impart that offers at least temporary relief
A Photo Where I Recognize Myself…
March 8, 2023: This week, I’ve been #reading about #love and the concept of #LettingGo. If you follow my highlights here, you’ve likely seen my sharing of posts that examine #selflove and #selfcare.
Embedded in the concept of unconditional love is the idea of letting go, or of letting things be. Kain Ramsay, in his @udemy course, #Mindfulness Practitioner Diploma, describes how: “Letting go is a way of simply accepting things as they are. Let your experience be what it is and practice observing it from #moment to moment. Sometimes things end, and sometimes people end.”
It’s one of the nine attitudinal foundations of mindfulness, as described by Dr Jon Kabat-Zinn. Specifically, Kabat-Zinn notes how this process can be painful, “… but the letting go is actually the doorway to freedom, and it’s something you don’t do once - it’s something you practice over and over and over again, moment by moment by moment. Every time you catch yourself clinging to something you remind yourself that it’s possible to just let it be, and to just let it go. The breath can remind us of that because every time we take a breath in, we have to let it go.”
@leeoralexandra notes how, “…whenever a challenge comes up, just let go, and you’ll open more. And that’s my path, it’s the path of the ocean, of love, of seeing God in everybody. And one of the things stops us from seeing God in everybody is attachment. Attachments come from the ego. Do you feel you can only be happy if you have this person in your life? Or this thing? Or this experience? Or this event? Or maybe it’s an attachment to who you want to be or who you see yourself as, to who you think you are.“ Alexandra also notes how “Our attachments are nightmares. When we’re attached, we are at the whim of our attachments and that’s such a heavy way to live…“
It’s something I’ve thought a lot about in recent weeks, especially as I find myself at a kind of a crossroads in my life - one where I can continue on the path where anxiety and depression continue to weigh down my life and muddy up my reflections and decisions. @aarondoughty44 explains, “…the key to this is realizing that it’s the #power of coming back to self, and not #abandoning yourself any longer. The most #magnetic thing you can do is to pull back your #energy, to be and feel safe in your own body… that allows you to heal (and in situations where another is involved), and it allows them (to heal), go through and get the space they’re asking for.”
It’s something that terrifies me. In a @coursera program on mindfulness I’ve been working through, it asked us to rate the level of difficulty we found an attitudinal foundation to be in terms of implementing it in our life. In terms of actualized practice, I rated it a 9/10, or very difficult. But ultimately, it’s a concept I know I need to do some serious work on.
67/365.
#beyourownbeloved #recognizingourselves
The Gold Coast Seaway or Southport Seaway is the main navigation entrance from the Pacific Ocean into the Gold Coast Broadwater and southern Moreton Bay and is one of Australia's most significant coastal engineering projects. It is located at the northern end of the Southport Spit where the Nerang River enters the Pacific Ocean. The channel was constructed between 1984 and 1986, primarily to facilitate the safe passage of sea-faring vessels.
The passage was previously known as the Southport Bar. The mouth of the Nerang River was once located further south in Broadbeach. The main driving force for this movement is the northward drift of sand along the coast.
Before the bypass system was implemented the mouth of the Nerang River moved northwards at a rate of 60 metres per year.[1] This northward drift was responsible for the unstable and shifting conditions of the bar, which made crossing it so hazardous for small boats.[1] The southern training wall of the Gold Coast Seaway is the northern end of the Gold Coast Oceanway.
The seaway is issued regular weather forecasts by the Bureau of Meteorology.
Source: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gold_Coast_Seaway
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1990 heralded a new decade with momentous change and significant events unfolding internationally and at home in Queensland. German reunification was achieved following the ‘fall’ of the Berlin Wall in November 1989. The Baltic states of Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia in turn declared their independence from the Soviet Union. Nelson Mandela was released after 27 years of imprisonment in South Africa, and Margaret Thatcher resigned as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom after more than 11 years in office. British computer scientist Tim Berners-Lee created the first web server and web browser, and the Hubble Space Telescope was launched from the space shuttle ‘Discovery’.
The Australian Labor Party’s federal election campaign was launched in Brisbane in early March before Prime Minister Bob Hawke’s government was returned later that month for a historic fourth term. Andrew Peacock resigned the leadership of the federal Liberal Party after the election defeat and was replaced by Dr John Hewson. Earlier in March, the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Commission (ATSIC) was founded. The inaugural Cape York Aboriginal Land Conference took place at Lockhart River in September, leading to the formation of the Cape York Land Council.
The nation’s first women Premiers were sworn into office this year, firstly Western Australia’s Carmen Lawrence in February followed by Victoria’s Joan Kirner in August. On the day of Kirner’s swearing in, the Hawke government announced Australia would join the international naval blockade of Iraq in the Persian Gulf. A specially convened ALP national conference in September endorsed the privatisation of Qantas and other assets, ahead of deregulation of the domestic aviation market in November. Near that month’s end, Treasurer Paul Keating declared Australia was enduring “the recession we had to have”.
The 1990s was a decade of transformation as infrastructure connected the state, the Internet changed how we worked and Agro was a prime-time star. These photographic highlights come from a collection of thousands of images captured by Transport and Main Roads, documenting the plans, programs and growth of Queensland throughout the decade.
Find this series in our catalogue: www.archivessearch.qld.gov.au/series/S20086
The Transport and Main Roads Visual Resource Library collection contains over 200.000 photographs and other resources from the 1920’s to 2005 from the many and varied road, transport and maritime departments over that time. It is mostly the work of the Photographic Branch and Graphic Reproduction Services Unit between the 1930s and the 1990s. Photographers Les Dixon, Bob Reid, Ian Williams, Murray Waite and Ray Burgress recorded works and events of the Department.
Subjects covered include road construction projects, environmental science, road fittings, public transport and road users, people at work, community engagement, official openings, sod turnings, new structures (bridges, dams and Queensland University), awards, department initiatives, safety campaigns, exhibitions and displays.
About Dr.Mihir Kumar Panda, Ph.D,D.Litt,, innovator
World’s only achiever of large number of World Record for 10,000 Teaching Aids & innovations
Founder & Co-ordinator General, ‘SROSTI’ (Social Development research Organisation for Science, technology & Implementation)
Collaborator Vijnana Bana Ashram
Bahanaga, Baleshwar, Odisha, India-756042
Website : simpleinnovationproject.com
E-Mail- : mihirpandasrosti@gmail.com
Face Book link:https://www.facebook.com/mihirpandasrosti
WIKIMAPIA
wikimapia.org/#lang=en&lat=-6.174348&lon=106.8293...
Contact No. : +91 7008406650
Whatsapp: +91 9438354515
Dr.Mihir Kumar Panda, an Educational, Societal and Scientific Innovator has established an NGO 'SROSTI' at Bahanaga, Balasore,Odisha,India
Dr. panda has innovated/invented more than 10,000 (ten thousand) teaching aids and different innovations and he has more than 30,000 (Thirty thousand) ideas to make scientific and mathematical models.
His creations are very essential guide for school and college science exhibitions, innovative learning and play way method for the teachers and students, science activists, innovators, craftsmen, farmers, masons, physically challenged persons, common men, entrepreneurs and industrialists.
He is popularizing science through song, innovative demonstrations and motivational speech since 1990 in different parts of Odisha state without taking any fees.
Dr. Panda is an extreme motivational speaker in science and possess magical scientific demonstration and a crowd puller.
Innovator Mihir Kumar Panda loves nature and in his agricultural farm he does not uses the chemicals , fertilizers and pesticides. In his farm even the smallest creatures like snakes, caterpillar, white ants, worms ,vermies are in peace and are managed successfully not to do harm.
Dr. Panda is an Educationist, an environmentalist, a poet for science popularization, a good orator, a best resource person to train others in specific field of science and engineering.
The uniqueness of Simple Innovation and scientific activities and achievements ofDr. Panda can not be assessed without visiting his laboratory which is a living wonder in the realm of science.
From a small cake cutter to mechanical scissor, from a play pump to rickshaw operated food grain spreader and from a village refrigerator to a multi-purpose machine, thousands of such inventions and innovations are proof of Dr. Panda's brilliance.
From a tube well operated washing machine to weight sensitive food grain separator, from a password protected wardrobe to automatic screen, from a Dual face fan to electricity producing fan are example of few thousands of innovations and inventions of Mihir Kumar Panda.
Dr.Mihir Kumar Panda though bestowed to a popular name as Einstein of Odisha is obliviously treated as Thomas Alva Edison of India.
Dr. Panda's residential house also resembles a museum with scientific innovations of different shapes and sizes stacked in every nook and cranny which proves his scientific involvement in personal life.
Innovator Panda believes that , the best thing a child can do with a toy to break it. he also believes that by Educating child in his/her choice subject/ passion a progressive nation can be built.
The shelf made scientist Dr. Panda believes that Education is a life long process whose scope is far greater than school curriculum. The moulding of models/ innovations done by hand always better than the things heard and the facts incorporated in the books.
With no agricultural background, Dr. Panda has developed unique natural bonsai in his Vijnana Bana Ashram which also shows path for earning just by uprooting and nurturing the plants which are found to be small and thumb in nature.
Dr. Panda's Scientific Endeavour and research is no doubt praise worthy. One cannot but believe his dedicated effort in simple innovation laboratory.
Social service, innovation/ inventions, writing, free technology to students for preparation of science exhibition projects, free technology to common men for their sustainability, preparation of big natural bonsai, technology for entrepreneurs and industrialists for innovative item are few works of Mihir Kumar Panda after his Government service.
. To overcome the difficulties of science and math, explanation in classes, innovator Panda has created few thousands of educational, societal and scientific innovations which helps teachers and students of the country and abroad.
Dr. Panda believes that though inventions/innovation has reached under thousands and thousands deep in the sea and high up in the space. It has reached on moon and mars, but unfortunately the sustainable inventions/innovation has not properly gone to the tiny tots and common people.
Dr. Panda is amazing and wizard of innovations and works with a principle the real scientist is he, who sees the things simply and works high.
Dr.Mihir Kumar Panda's work can be explained in short
Sports with Science from Dawn to Dusk
Struggle some life- science in words and action
Triumphs of Science - Science at foot path
Hilarious dream in midst scarcity
A life of innovator de-avoided of Advertisement.
FELICITATIONS, AWARDS, HONOURS & RECORDS
* 200+ Felicitation and Awards from different NGOs, Schools & Colleges within the State of Odisha and National level.
* 10 Nos Gold, Silver & Bronze medal from different National & International level.
*Awarded for 10,000 innovations & 30,000 ideas by Indian Science Congress Association, Govt. of India.
* Honorary Ph.D From Nelson Mandela University, United States of America
* Honorary Ph.D From Global Peace University, United States of America& India
* Honorary D.Litt From Global Peace University, United States of America& India
* Title ‘Einstein of Odisha’ by Assam Book of Records, Assam
* Title ‘Thomas Alva Edison of India’ by Anandashree Organisation, Mumbai
* Title ‘ Einstein of Odisha & Thomas Alva Edison of India’ from Bengal Book of World record.
*World Record from OMG Book of Records
*World Record from Assam Book of Records,
* World Record from World Genius Records, Nigeria
* World Record from BengalBook of Records
* National Record from Diamond Book of Records
* World Record from Asian World Records
* World Record from Champians Book of World Records
* World Record from The British World Records
* World Record from Gems Book of World Records
* World Record from India Star World Record
* World Record from Geniuses World Records
* World Record from Royal Success International Book of Records
*World Record from Supreme World Records
* World Record from Uttarpradesh World Records
*World Record from Exclusive World Records
*World Record from international Book of Records
*World Record from Incredible Book of records
* World Record from Cholan Book of World Record
* World Record from Bravo International Book of World Record
* World Record from High Range Book of World Record
* World Record from Kalam’s World Record
* World Record from Hope international World Record
* International Honours from Nigeria
* Indian icon Award from Global Records & Research Foundation (G.R.R.F.)
* International Award from USA for the year’2019 as INNOVATOR OF THE YEAR-2019
* National level Excellence Leadership Award-2020 from Anandashree Organisation, Mumbai
* Best Practical Demonstrator & Theory instructor from Collector & District Magistrate,
Balasore.
* Best Innovator Award by Bengal Book.
* Popular Indian Award by Bengal Book.
* Great man Award by Bengal Book.
* Best Indian Award by Bengal Book.
* The Man of the Era by Bengal Book.
IMPORTANT LINK FILES TO KNOW THE WORK OF
Dr. MIHIR KUMAR PANDA
Dr.Mihir Ku panda awarded at indian science congress Association, Govt. of India for 10000 innovations & 30,000 ideas
Hindi Media report- Simple innovation science show for popularisation of science in free of cost by Dr.Mihir Ku Panda
Simple innovation science show for popularisation of science in free of cost in different parts of India By Dr.Mihirku Panda
www.youtube.com/user/mihirkumarpanda/videos?view=0&so...
Simple innovation laboratory at a Glance
MORE LINK FILES OF Dr MIHIR KUMAR PANDA
www.youtube.com/watch?v=MFIh2AoEy_g
www.youtube.com/channel/UCIksem1pJdDvK87ctJOlN1g
www.youtube.com/watch?v=AHEAPp8V5MI
www.youtube.com/watch?v=W43tAYO7wpQ
www.youtube.com/watch?v=me43aso--Xg
www.youtube.com/watch?v=6XEeZjBDnu4
www.youtube.com/watch?v=gPbJyB8aE2s
www.youtube.com/watch?v=yNIIJHdNo6M
www.youtube.com/watch?v=oPBdJpwYINI
www.youtube.com/watch?v=XBR-e-tFVyE
www.youtube.com/watch?v=3JjCnF7gqKA
www.youtube.com/watch?v=raq_ZtllYRg
cholanbookofworldrecords.com/dr-mihir-kumar-pandaph-d-lit...
www.linkedin.com/in/dr-mihir-kumar-panda-ph-d-d-litt-inno...
www.bhubaneswarbuzz.com/updates/education/inspiring-odish...
www.millenniumpost.in/features/kiit-hosts-isca-national-s...
www.youtube.com/watch?v=hFE6c-XZoh0
www.youtube.com/watch?v=WzZ0XaZpJqQ
www.dailymotion.com/video/x2no10i
www.exclusiveworldrecords.com/description.aspx?id=320
royalsuccessinternationalbookofrecords.com/home.php
british-world-records.business.site/posts/236093666996870...
www.tes.com/lessons/QKpLNO0seGI8Zg/experiments-in-science
dadasahebphalkefilmfoundation.com/2020/02/17/excellent-le...
www.facebook.com/…/a.102622791195…/103547424435915/… yearsP0-IR6tvlSw70ddBY_ySrBDerjoHhG0izBJwIBlqfh7QH9Qdo74EnhihXw35Iz8u-VUEmY&__tn__=EHH-R
wwwchampions-book-of-world-records.business.site/?fbclid=...
www.videomuzik.biz/video/motivational-science-show-ortalk...
lb.vlip.lv/channel/ST3PYAvIAou1RcZ/tTEq34EKxoToRqOK.html
imglade.com/tag/grassrootsinventions
picnano.com/tags/UnstoppableINDIAN
www.viveos.net/rev/mihirs%2Btrue%2Bnature
www.facebook.com/worldgeniusrec…/…/2631029263841682…
www.upbr.in/record-galle…/upcoming-genius-innovator/…
www.geniusesworldrecordsandaward.com/
www.upbr.in/record-galle…/upcoming-genius-innovator/…
m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=699422677473920&i...
www.facebook.com/internationalbookofrecords/
www.youtube.com/channel/UCBFJGiEx1Noba0x-NCWbwSg
www.youtube.com/watch?v=nL60GRF6avk
www.facebook.com/bengal.book.16/posts/122025902616062
www.facebook.com/bengal.book.16/posts/122877319197587
www.facebook.com/bengal.book.16/posts/119840549501264
supremebookofworldrecords.blogspot.com/…/welcome-to…
A Sikh is a follower of Sikhism, a monotheistic religion which originated during the 15th century in the Punjab region. The term "Sikh" has its origin in the Sanskrit words शिष्य (śiṣya; disciple, student) or शिक्ष (śikṣa; instruction). A Sikh is a disciple of a guru. According to Article I of the Sikh Rehat Maryada (the Sikh code of conduct), a Sikh is "any human being who faithfully believes in One Immortal Being; ten Gurus, from Guru Nanak to Guru Gobind Singh; Guru Granth Sahib; the teachings of the ten Gurus and the baptism bequeathed by the tenth Guru". "Sikh" properly refers to adherents of Sikhism as a religion, not an ethnic group. However, because Sikhs often share strong ethno-religious ties, many countries, such as the U.K., recognize Sikh as a designated ethnicity on their censuses. The American non-profit organization United Sikhs has fought to have Sikh included on the U.S. census as well, arguing that Sikhs "self-identify as an 'ethnic minority'" and believe "that they are more than just a religion".
Male Sikhs usually have "Singh" (Lion), and female Sikhs have "Kaur" (Princess) as their middle or last name. Sikhs who have undergone the khanḍe-kī-pahul (the Sikh initiation ceremony) may also be recognized by the five Ks: uncut hair (kesh); an iron or steel bracelet (kara); a kirpan (a sword tucked into a gatra strap); kachehra, a cotton undergarment, and kanga, a small wooden comb. Baptized male Sikhs must cover their hair with a turban, which is optional for baptized female Sikhs. The greater Punjab region is the historic homeland of the Sikhs, although significant communities exist around the world.
HISTORY
Sikh political history may be said to begin with the death of the fifth Sikh guru, Guru Arjan Dev, in 1606. Guru Nanak was a religious leader and social reformer in the 15th-century Punjab. Religious practices were formalized by Guru Gobind Singh on 30 March 1699. Singh baptized five people from a variety of social backgrounds, known as the Panj Piare (the five beloved ones) to form the Khalsa, or collective body of initiated Sikhs. Sikhism has generally had amicable relations with other religions, except for the period of Mughal rule in India (1556–1707). Several Sikh gurus were killed by the Mughals for opposing their persecution of minority religious communities including Sikhs. Sikhs subsequently militarized to oppose Mughal rule. The emergence of the Sikh Confederacy under Ranjit Singh was characterized by religious tolerance and pluralism, with Christians, Muslims and Hindus in positions of power. The confederacy is considered the zenith of political Sikhism, encompassing Kashmir, Ladakh and Peshawar. Hari Singh Nalwa, the commander-in-chief of the Sikh army in the North West Frontier, expanded the confederacy to the Khyber Pass. Its secular administration implemented military, economic and governmental reforms. The months leading up to the partition of India in 1947 were marked by conflict in the Punjab between Sikhs and Muslims. This caused the religious migration of Punjabi Sikhs and Hindus from West Punjab, mirroring a similar religious migration of Punjabi Muslims from East Punjab.
The 1960s saw growing animosity between Sikhs and Hindus in India, with the Sikhs demanding the creation of a Punjab state on a linguistic basis similar to other states in India. This was promised to Sikh leader Master Tara Singh by Jawaharlal Nehru, in return for Sikh political support during negotiations for Indian independence. Although the Sikhs obtained the Punjab, they lost Hindi-speaking areas to Himachal Pradesh, Haryana and Rajasthan. Chandigarh was made a union territory and the capital of Haryana and Punjab on 1 November 1966.
Tensions arose again during the late 1970s, fueled by Sikh claims of discrimination and marginalisation by the Hindu-dominated Indian National Congress party and tactics adopted by the Prime Minister Indira Gandhi.
According to Katherine Frank, Indira Gandhi's assumption of emergency powers in 1975 resulted in the weakening of the "legitimate and impartial machinery of government", and her increasing "paranoia" about opposing political groups led her to institute a "despotic policy of playing castes, religions and political groups against each other for political advantage". Sikh leader Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale articulated Sikh demands for justice, and this triggered violence in the Punjab. The prime minister's 1984 defeat of Bhindranwale led to an attack on the Golden Temple in Operation Blue Star and to her assassination by her Sikh bodyguards. Gandhi's assassination resulted in an explosion of violence against Sikh communities and the killing of thousands of Sikhs throughout India. Khushwant Singh described the riots as a Sikh pogrom; he "felt like a refugee in my country. In fact, I felt like a Jew in Nazi Germany". Since 1984, relations between Sikhs and Hindus have moved toward a rapprochement aided by economic prosperity. However, a 2002 claim by the Hindu right-wing Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) that "Sikhs are Hindus" disturbed Sikh sensibilities. The Khalistan movement campaigns for justice for the victims of the violence, and for the political and economic needs of the Punjab.
In 1996, United Nations Commission on Human Rights Freedom of Religion or Belief Special Rapporteur Abdelfattah Amor (Tunisia, 1993–2004) visited India to report on religious discrimination. The following year Amor concluded, "In India it appears that the situation of the Sikhs in the religious field is satisfactory, but that difficulties are arising in the political (foreign interference, terrorism, etc.), economic (in particular with regard to sharing of water supplies) and even occupational fields. Information received from nongovernment (sic) sources indicates that discrimination does exist in certain sectors of the public administration; examples include the decline in the number of Sikhs in the police force and the military, and the absence of Sikhs in personal bodyguard units since the murder of Indira Gandhi".
Although Sikhs comprise 10 to 15 percent of all ranks of the Indian Army and 20 percent of its officers, they make up 1.87 percent of the Indian population.
During the 1999 Vaisakhi, Sikhs worldwide celebrated the 300th anniversary of the creation of the Khalsa. Canada Post honoured Sikh Canadians with a commemorative stamp in conjunction with the 300th anniversary of Vaisakhi. On April 9, 1999, Indian president K.R. Narayanan issued a stamp commemorating the 300th anniversary of the Khalsa.
DEFINITION
According to Guru Granth Sahib:
One who calls himself a Sikh of the Guru, the True Guru, shall rise in the early morning hours and meditate on the Lord's Name. Upon arising early in the morning, the Sikh is to bathe, and cleanse himself in the pool of nectar. Following the Instructions of the Guru, the Sikh is to chant the Name of the Lord, Har. All sins, misdeeds and negativity shall be erased. Then, at the rising of the sun, the Sikh is to sing Gurbani; whether sitting down or standing up, the Sikh is to meditate on the Lord's Name. One who meditates on my Lord, Har, with every breath and every morsel of food – that Gursikh becomes pleasing to the Guru's Mind. That person, unto whom my Lord and Master is kind and compassionate – upon that Gursikh, the Guru's Teachings are bestowed. Servant Nanak begs for the dust of the feet of that Gursikh, who himself chants the Naam, and inspires others to chant it.
Simran of the Lord's name is a recurring theme of Guru Granth Sahib, and Sukhmani Sahib were composed to allow a devotee to recite Nam throughout the day. Rising at Amrit Velā (before sunrise) is a common Sikh practice. Sikhism considers the spiritual and secular lives to be intertwined: "In the Sikh Weltanschauung ... the temporal world is part of the Infinite and partakes of its characteristics." According to Guru Nanak, living an "active, creative, and practical life" of "truthfulness, fidelity, self-control and purity" is superior to a purely contemplative life.
FIVE Ks
The five Ks (panj kakaar) are five articles of faith which all baptized Sikhs (Amritdhari Sikhs) are obliged to wear. The symbols represent the ideals of Sikhism: honesty, equality, fidelity, meditating on God and never bowing to tyranny. The five symbols are:
- Kesh: Uncut hair, usually tied and wrapped in a Dastar
- Kanga: A wooden comb, usually worn under a Dastar
- Katchera: Cotton undergarments, historically appropriate in battle due to increased mobility when compared to a dhoti. Worn by both sexes, the katchera is a symbol of chastity.
- Kara: An iron bracelet, a weapon and a symbol of eternity
- Kirpan: An iron dagger in different sizes. In the UK Sikhs can wear a small dagger, but in the Punjab they might wear a traditional curved sword from one to three feet in length.
MUSIC & INSTRUMENTS
The Sikhs have a number of musical instruments: the rebab, dilruba, taus, jori and sarinda. Playing the sarangi was encouraged in Guru Har Gobind. The rubab was first played by Bhai Mardana as he accompanied Guru Nanak on his journeys. The jori and sarinda were designed by Guru Arjan. The taus was made by Guru Hargobind, who supposedly heard a peacock singing and wanted to create an instrument mimicking its sounds (taus is the Persian word for peacock). The dilruba was made by Guru Gobind Singh at the request of his followers, who wanted a smaller instrument than the taus. After Japji Sahib, all of the shabda in the Guru Granth Sahib were composed as ragas. This type of singing is known as Gurmat Sangeet.
When they marched into battle, the Sikhs would play a Ranjit Nagara (victory drum) to boost morale. Nagaras (usually two to three feet in diameter, although some were up to five feet in diameter) are played with two sticks. The beat of the large drums, and the raising of the Nishan Sahib, meant that the singhs were on their way.
DISTRIBUTION
Numbering about 27 million worldwide, Sikhs make up 0.39 percent of the world population; approximately 83 percent live in India. About 76 percent of all Sikhs live in the north Indian State of Punjab, where they form a majority (about two-thirds) of the population. Substantial communities of Sikhs (more than 200,000) live in the Indian states or union territories of Haryana (more than 1.1 million), Rajasthan, West Bengal, Uttar Pradesh, Delhi, Maharashtra, Uttarakhand, Madhya Pradesh Assam and Jammu and Kashmir.
Sikh migration from British India began in earnest during the second half of the 19th century, when the British completed their annexation of the Punjab. The British Raj recruited Sikhs for the Indian Civil Service (particularly the British Indian Army), which led to Sikh migration throughout India and the British Empire. During the Raj, semiskilled Sikh artisans were transported from the Punjab to British East Africa to help build railroads. Sikhs emigrated from India and Pakistan after World War II, most going to the United Kingdom but many to North America. Some Sikhs who had settled in eastern Africa were expelled by Ugandan dictator Idi Amin in 1972. Economics is a major factor in Sikh migration, and significant communities exist in the United Kingdom, Canada, the United States, Malaysia, East Africa, Australia and Thailand.
Although the rate of Sikh migration from the Punjab has remained high, traditional patterns of Sikh migration favouring English-speaking countries (particularly the United Kingdom) have changed during the past decade due to stricter immigration laws. Moliner (2006) wrote that as a consequence of Sikh migration to the UK "becom[ing] virtually impossible since the late 1970s", migration patterns evolved to continental Europe. Italy is a rapidly growing destination for Sikh migration, with Reggio Emilia and Vicenza having significant Sikh population clusters. Italian Sikhs are generally involved in agriculture, agricultural processing, the manufacture of machine tools and horticulture.
Primarily for socio-economic reasons, Indian Sikhs have the lowest adjusted growth rate of any major religious group in India, at 16.9 percent per decade (estimated from 1991 to 2001). Johnson and Barrett (2004) estimate that the global Sikh population increases annually by 392,633 (1.7 percent per year, based on 2004 figures); this percentage includes births, deaths and conversions.
REPRESENTATION
Sikhs have been represented in Indian politics by former Indian prime minister Manmohan Singh and the deputy chairman of the Indian Planning Commission, Montek Singh Ahluwalia. Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal is also a Sikh. Past Sikh politicians in India include former president Giani Zail Singh, Sardar Swaran Singh (India's first foreign minister), Speaker of Parliament Gurdial Singh Dhillon and former Chief Minister of Punjab Pratap Singh Kairon.
Politicians from the Sikh diaspora include the first Asian American member of the United States Congress, Dalip Singh Saund, British MPs Piara Khabra, Parmjit Dhanda and Paul Uppal, the first couple to sit together in a Commonwealth parliament (Gurmant Grewal and Nina Grewal, who requested a Canadian government apology for the Komagata Maru incident), former Canadian Shadow Social Development Minister Ruby Dhalla, Canadian Minister of State for Sport Baljit Singh Gosal and Legislative Assembly of Ontario members Vic Dhillon and Jagmeet Singh. Ujjal Dosanjh was the New Democratic Party Premier of British Columbia from July 2004 to February 2005, and was later a Liberal frontbench MP in Ottawa. In Malaysia, two Sikhs were elected MPs in the 2008 general elections: Karpal Singh (Bukit Gelugor) and his son, Gobind Singh Deo (Puchong). Two Sikhs were elected assemblymen: Jagdeep Singh Deo (Datuk Keramat) and Keshvinder Singh (Malim Nawar).
Sikhs comprise 10 to 15 percent of all ranks in the Indian Army and 20 percent of its officers, while making up 1.87 percent of the Indian population. The Sikh Regiment is one of the most-decorated regiments in the army, with 73 Battle Honours, 14 Victoria Crosses, 21 first-class Indian Orders of Merit (equivalent to the Victoria Cross), 15 Theatre Honours, five COAS Unit Citations, two Param Vir Chakras, 14 Maha Vir Chakras, five Kirti Chakras, 67 Vir Chakras and 1,596 other awards. The highest-ranking general in the history of the Indian Air Force is a Punjabi Sikh, Marshal of the Air Force Arjan Singh. Plans by the United Kingdom Ministry of Defence for a Sikh infantry regiment were scrapped in June 2007.
Historically, most Indians have been farmers and 66 percent of the Indian population are engaged in agriculture. Indian Sikhs are employed in agriculture to a lesser extent; India's 2001 census found 39 percent of the working population of the Punjab employed in this sector. The success of the 1960s Green Revolution, in which India went from "famine to plenty, from humiliation to dignity", was based in the Punjab (which became known as "the breadbasket of India"). The Punjab is the wealthiest Indian state per capita, with the average Punjabi income three times the national average. The Green Revolution centred on Indian farmers adopting more intensive and mechanised agricultural methods, aided by the electrification of the Punjab, cooperative credit, consolidation of small holdings and the existing, British Raj-developed canal system. According to Swedish political scientist Ishtiaq Ahmad, a factor in the success of the Indian green revolution was the "Sikh cultivator, often the Jat, whose courage, perseverance, spirit of enterprise and muscle prowess proved crucial". However, not all aspects of the green revolution were beneficial. Indian physicist Vandana Shiva wrote that the green revolution made the "negative and destructive impacts of science [i.e. the green revolution] on nature and society" invisible, and was a catalyst for Punjabi Sikh and Hindu tensions despite a growth in material wealth.
Punjabi Sikhs are engaged in a number of professions which include science, engineering and medicine. Notable examples are nuclear scientist Piara Singh Gill (who worked on the Manhattan Project), fibre-optics pioneer Narinder Singh Kapany and physicist, science writer and broadcaster Simon Singh.
In business, the UK-based clothing retailers New Look and the Thai-based Jaspal were founded by Sikhs. India's largest pharmaceutical company, Ranbaxy Laboratories, is headed by Sikhs. UK Sikhs have the highest percentage of home ownership (82 percent) of any religious community. UK Sikhs are the second-wealthiest (after the Jewish community) religious group in the UK, with a median total household wealth of £229,000. In Singapore Kartar Singh Thakral expanded his family's trading business, Thakral Holdings, into total assets of almost $1.4 billion and is Singapore's 25th-richest person. Sikh Bob Singh Dhillon is the first Indo-Canadian billionaire. The Sikh diaspora has been most successful in North America, especially in California’s fertile Central Valley. American Sikh farmers such as Harbhajan Singh Samra and Didar Singh Bains dominate California agriculture, with Samra specialising in okra and Bains in peaches.
Sikh intellectuals, sportsmen and artists include writer Khushwant Singh, England cricketer Monty Panesar, former 400m runner Milkha Singh, Indian wrestler and actor Dara Singh, former Indian hockey team captains Ajitpal Singh and Balbir Singh Sr., former Indian cricket captain Bishen Singh Bedi, Harbhajan Singh (India's most successful off spin cricket bowler), Bollywood actress Neetu Singh, Sunny Leone, actors Parminder Nagra, Neha Dhupia, Gul Panag, Mona Singh, Namrata Singh Gujral, Archie Panjabi and director Gurinder Chadha.
Sikhs have migrated worldwide, with a variety of occupations. The Sikh Gurus preached ethnic and social harmony, and Sikhs comprise a number of ethnic groups. Those with over 1,000 members include the Ahluwalia, Arain, Arora, Bhatra, Bairagi, Bania, Basith, Bawaria, Bazigar, Bhabra, Chamar, Chhimba, Darzi, Dhobi, Gujar, Jatt, Jhinwar, Kahar, Kalal, Kamboj, Khatri, Kumhar, Labana, Lohar, Mahtam, Mazhabi, Megh, Mirasi, Mochi, Nai, Rajput, Ramgarhia, Saini, Sarera, Sikligar, Sunar, Sudh, Tarkhan and Zargar.
An order of Punjabi Sikhs, the Nihang or the Akalis, was formed during Ranjit Singh's time. Under their leader, Akali Phula Singh, they won many battles for the Sikh Confederacy during the early 19th century.
IN THE INDIAN & BRITISH ARMIES
Sikhs supported the British during the Indian Rebellion of 1857. By the beginning of World War I, Sikhs in the British Indian Army totaled over 100,000 (20 percent of the force). Until 1945 fourteen Victoria Crosses were awarded to Sikhs, a per-capita regimental record. In 2002 the names of all Sikh VC and George Cross recipients were inscribed on the monument of the Memorial Gates on Constitution Hill, next to Buckingham Palace. Chanan Singh Dhillon was instrumental in campaigning for the memorial.
During World War I, Sikh battalions fought in Egypt, Palestine, Mesopotamia, Gallipoli and France. Six battalions of the Sikh Regiment were raised during World War II, serving in the Second Battle of El Alamein, the Burma and Italian campaigns and in Iraq and receiving 27 battle honours. Around the world, Sikhs are commemorated in Commonwealth cemeteries.
In the last two world wars 83,005 turban wearing Sikh soldiers were killed and 109,045 were wounded. They all died or were wounded for the freedom of Britain and the world, and during shell fire, with no other protection but the turban, the symbol of their faith.
—General Sir Frank Messervy
British people are highly indebted and obliged to Sikhs for a long time. I know that within this century we needed their help twice [in two world wars] and they did help us very well. As a result of their timely help, we are today able to live with honour, dignity, and independence. In the war, they fought and died for us, wearing the turbans.
—Sir Winston Churchill
IN THE WEST
During the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Sikhs began to emigrate to East Africa, the Far East, Canada, the United States and the United Kingdom. In 1907 the Khalsa Diwan Society was established in Vancouver, and four years later the first gurdwara was established in London. In 1912 the first gurdwara in the United States was founded in Stockton, California.
Since Sikhs (like Middle Eastern men) wear turbans, some in Western countries have been mistaken for Muslim or Arabic men since the September 11 attacks and the Iraq War. Several days after the 9/11 attacks Sikh Balbir Singh Sodhi was murdered by Frank Roque, who thought Sodhi was connected with al-Qaeda. CNN suggested an increase in hate crimes against Sikh men in the United States and the UK after the 9/11 attacks.
Since Sikhism has never actively sought converts, the Sikhs have remained a relatively homogeneous ethnic group. The Kundalini Yoga-based activities of Harbhajan Singh Yogi in his 3HO (Happy, Healthy, Holy) organisation claim to have inspired a moderate growth in non-Indian adherents of Sikhism. In 1998 an estimated 7,800 3HO Sikhs, known colloquially as ‘gora’ (ਗੋਰਾ) or ‘white’ Sikhs, were mainly centred around Española, New Mexico and Los Angeles, California. Sikhs and the Sikh American Legal Defense and Education Fund overturned a 1925 Oregon law banning the wearing of turbans by teachers and government officials.
In an attempt to foster Sikh leaders in the Western world, youth initiatives by a number of organisations have begun. The Sikh Youth Alliance of North America sponsors an annual Sikh Youth Symposium, a public-speaking and debate competition held in gurdwaras throughout the U.S. and Canada.
ART & CULTURE
Sikh art and culture are nearly synonymous with that of the Punjab, and Sikhs are easily recognised by their distinctive turban (Dastar). The Punjab has been called India’s melting pot, due to the confluence of invading cultures (Greek, Mughal and Persian) from the rivers from which the region gets its name. Sikh culture is therefore a synthesis of cultures. Sikhism has forged a unique architecture, which S. S. Bhatti described as "inspired by Guru Nanak’s creative mysticism" and "is a mute harbinger of holistic humanism based on pragmatic spirituality".
During the Mughal and Afghan persecution of the Sikhs during the 17th and 18th centuries, the latter were concerned with preserving their religion and gave little thought to art and culture. With the rise of Ranjit Singh and the Sikh Raj in Lahore and Delhi, there was a change in the landscape of art and culture in the Punjab; Hindus and Sikhs could build decorated shrines without the fear of destruction or looting.
The Sikh Confederacy was the catalyst for a uniquely Sikh form of expression, with Ranjit Singh commissioning forts, palaces, bungas (residential places) and colleges in a Sikh style. Sikh architecture is characterised by gilded fluted domes, cupolas, kiosks, stone lanterns, ornate balusters and square roofs. A pinnacle of Sikh style is Harmandir Sahib (also known as the Golden Temple) in Amritsar.
Sikh culture is influenced by militaristic motifs (with the Khanda the most obvious), and most Sikh artifacts - except for the relics of the Gurus - have a military theme. This theme is evident in the Sikh festivals of Hola Mohalla and Vaisakhi, which feature marching and displays of valor.
Although the art and culture of the Sikh diaspora have merged with that of other Indo-immigrant groups into categories like "British Asian", "Indo-Canadian" and "Desi-Culture", a minor cultural phenomenon which can be described as "political Sikh" has arisen. The art of diaspora Sikhs like Amarjeet Kaur Nandhra and Amrit and Rabindra Kaur Singh (the "Singh Twins") is influenced by their Sikhism and current affairs in the Punjab.
Bhangra and Giddha are two forms of Punjabi folk dancing which have been adapted and pioneered by Sikhs. Punjabi Sikhs have championed these forms of expression worldwide, resulting in Sikh culture becoming linked to Bhangra (although "Bhangra is not a Sikh institution but a Punjabi one").
PAINTING
Sikh painting is a direct offshoot of the Kangra school of painting. In 1810, Ranjeet Singh (1780–1839) occupied Kangra Fort and appointed Sardar Desa Singh Majithia his governor of the Punjab hills. In 1813 the Sikh army occupied Guler State, and Raja Bhup Singh became a vassal of the Sikhs. With the Sikh kingdom of Lahore becoming the paramount power, some of the Pahari painters from Guler migrated to Lahore for the patronage of Maharaja Ranjeet Singh and his Sardars.
The Sikh school adapted Kangra painting to Sikh needs and ideals. Its main subjects are the ten Sikh gurus and stories from Guru Nanak's Janamsakhis. The tenth Guru, Gobind Singh, left a deep impression on the followers of the new faith because of his courage and sacrifices. Hunting scenes and portraits are also common in Sikh painting.
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