“Here at Kyari, we are passing the messages to the young village school kids to protect eco-tourism and how to cultivate butterflies.” Saurabh Bansal from the Tyar Foundation described to us how important it is to teach the school kids from the very beginning of their lives about nature and how to conserve it.
Our journey began in Delhi, and we reached Ram Nagar, Uttarakhand, by noon. Alaya Resort welcomed us with a warm gesture, and after a quick lunch, we headed towards Kyari Village to attend the Butterfly Festival, or Titli Tyar, organized by the Tyar Foundation, Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS), and India Tourism Delhi. All the children from nearby places arrived in Kyari, having fun while learning about butterflies and creating paper butterflies with paper quilling.
On that day, I spent a considerable amount of time in the Tarai region of Uttarakhand and observed the challenges endured by the local people. Surrounded by the Khichdi and Toshi rivers, the village people are busy collecting firewood and walking long distances to go to school or hospitals. Where is there time to learn about the butterfly’s lifecycle, the moth cycle, and how to conserve flora and fauna? I personally got to know about the seed bombing and butterfly cultivation processes organized by the BNHS team. My question is: can we protect the natural reservoir and understand its importance by educating people from local villages or by organizing local educational festivals?
But Santosh Pant, the forest officer of Bela Pandav Range who now calls Ram Nagar home, has a simple philosophy. You cannot teach hungry people when they do not find any income from it. It is better to provide them with the income process while teaching them valuable ideas about eco-tourism and how our future will benefit from it without harming nature. At the same time, encourage them to keep the wisdom of the traditional era: preserve natural resources, apply the gorilla process for reforestation, be proud of their local tourism, and retail their innate hospitality towards outsiders.
So, next time you are planning to visit Uttarakhand, I highly recommend staying away from the overgrown, soulless market town. Try to stay in the middle of the forest and river, slightly at the Tarai base, and near any village like Kyari. The morning village walks, butterfly trails, local food, local talk, and a small hike to Barati Row waterfalls definitely give you the vibe of the closeness of nature. I would suggest you connect with people from the Tyar Foundation to learn more about the lifecycle of butterflies, the seed bombing process, and sustainable eco-tourism.
See The Festival Glimpse and the Village here
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