Rock Art of South America

Rock Art sites in Peru

The International Rock Art Exhibition at New Delhi intimates following regarding rock art of South America.

 

'Rock art sites are found from almost all the countries like Venezuela, Colombia, Chile, Bolivia, Brazil, Peru and Argentina. Major concentrations are in Toro Muerto and Lima region site complex in Peru, Serra da Capivara in Brazil, Cueva de las Manos (Cave of the Hands) in Argentina. Among them Serra da Capivara in Brazil is the oldest rock painting site where the earliest evidence of paintiing goes back to more than 25,000 years. The stylized human figures depicted on the Volcanic Tufa blocks of the huge site Toro Muerto and the complex motifs from the sites of the Lima region are the significant examples from Peru. Recently, emphasis has given into the study of the Bolivian rock art. Mask like motifs from Santa Cruz, Bolivia are unique in nature. Besides, animal and human figures, hunting scenes and geometric designs, there are numerous hand stencils executed at the same place continuously for thousands of years on the walls of the 'Cave of the Hands' from Patagonia in Argentina. These are fascinating indeed'.

 

Rock art depicting human figures in Argentina

 

 

Rock Art of North America

The visit to International Rock Art Exhibition, which is currently running in New Delhi, has been a great effort where rock art formations from across the world have been displayed. The amount of information displayed indicates the depth of research which has gone into organising such an exhibition.

Major Rock Art sites in North America

 

The following has been displayed at the exhibition regarding rock art of North America.

"It has been displayed The North America is very rich in Rock Art distributed throughout the continent. Rock art sites are known to occur from the northern most point at Bering Strait in Central Alaska to Panama, the southernmost country of the Latin America. All these countries have rock art sites but the richest concentration is in the south western part of the USA. The states include California, Arizona, New Mexico, Nevada and Utah. The traditions practised here have great variations in subject matter, style and technique reflecting diverse thought processes of the early inhabitants of America. The colourful and complicated geometric images of Chumash people in Western California are believed to be done in trance or in intoxicated condition. Thousands of petroglyphs in the canyons of Coso Range are one of the richest concentrations of rock art. The noteworthy among them are Patterned Body of Anthropomorphic figures, sometimes associated with animals and depictions of 'Big Horn sheep'. The delicate Fremont Style and large mummy like figures of Barrier Canyon in Utah, the mysterious shamanistic representations of Texas etc. are the other notable traditions". 

Rock Art geometrical designs in Arizona

 

GD Goenka School Christmas Carnival

It was the first thick fog of winter season near Delhi on Dec 23, 2012. A perfect weather for a nice gathering. Pleasant, cloud-like fog, little traffic and no wind-chill. In this perfect setting, a Christmas Carnival was organised at the school campus by GD Goenka School, Greater Noida near Delhi. A very well organised event, had everything what the kids would love to have on a perfect Christmas outing. As the Sun peeped through the vanishing fog a while later, the arena was brightly lit to present a soothing atmosphere.

The school bus commuting visitors through fog to carnival.

The stage decorated with Red & White.

The school lawns were dotted with splash of red colour of Santa Clause and white colour of Snow all around. The red and white baloons and the same colour combination for pavilions offering Christmas special goods mainly for children were added attractions.

Celebrating CHRISTMAS at GD Goenka School

A little kid enjoying horse ride at Christmas Carnival

The carnival was visited by many school going kids with parents and friends. They were kept engaged throughout with many events and games of fun and frolic. Many were seen enjoying the horse rides with their parents shooting pics for fond memory. A band comprising of many bagpipers swaying melodiously filled the air with lovely music. 

Swaying Bagpipers at Carnival.



Shopping for Christmas goodies.

The stalls at the carnival brought Christmas specialities to spread festive warmth which included toys, gifts n return-gifts, selective jewellery, educative robots, winter wear, handicrafts  etc. A stall owner informed that invisible pens, magic erasers and goody bags were among great hits with children. Of course, the food court satisfied the culinary tastes with  street delicacies from various parts of the country.

A joy ride for kids at carnival.

Fun all around.

Various games for fun and leisure kept visitors of all ages engaged in festivities. Art competition, baby show, talent hunt, housie organised by school teachers saw grand participation. The star attraction of the event was the presence of former fast bowler of Indian cricket team, mr. Kapil Dev Nikhanj, who graced the occasion with his brief presence to award winners of the lucky draw with grand prizes. The cricketer called upon the students to make sincere efforts and realise their dreams.

Kapil Dev, ex-cricketer, arriving to grace the occasion.

The grand event will be remembered by the participants for a long time to come.


 

Rose Show

Rose show is going on at chanakyapuri

1st Krackerjack Carnival, New Delhi

First Krackerjack Carnival for kids at Delhi.

Banner showing Activity Schedule at venue.

Entrance to the Krackerjack Carnival

Crowd busy in playing 'Chhota Bheem' theme games.

The activity area at the Carnival

A view of stalls selling mainly kids items.

 

2nd India-ASEAN Business Fair



2nd India-ASEAN Business Fair

 

The visit to 2nd India-ASEAN Business Fair (IABF) & Business Conclave at New Delhi today gave an insight view about the participating countries. The three day event, which was inaugurated by Mr. Anand sharma (Indian Minister of Commerce and Industry)  provides a platform for furthering the business interests of participating nations. The theme of the event is ‘India-ASEAN : Forging Partnership for Economic Integration'. ASEAN (Association of South East Asian Nations) comprises of 10 member nations namely Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam. Understand that India shares a close bond with ASEAN countries based on mutual interests and common challenges. The event is considered a golden opportunity for B2B meet between the participating nations in various sectors.

 

A wooden handcrafted sailing ship at a stall from Vietnam

 

The stalls at the fair, which showcase wealth of items, offer various B2B opportunities for joint economic developement by bringing together the business leaders across various industry segments. The fair facilitates sharing of knowledge and business strategies in various sectors like agriculture, construction, plastics, health care, jewellary, handicrafts, fashion accessories, garments etc. from each country.

 

The handcrafted antique ships of Thien Thuong Boat (Vietnam), handicrafts and fashion accessories of Pt. Asia Moon (Indonesia), plastic furniture items of Pt. Rovega Kirana (Indonesia) etc. impressed me in particular.

 

 

 

Soar High with KITES



It was a bright weekend and a nice sunny weather to be at International Kite Flying Festival being held at iconic India Gate in New Delhi on Dec 08, 2012. The second edition of the festival had participants from UK, Thailand etc. The kites of myriad shapes, sizes and attractive colour combinations won hearts of many visitors who thronged the lawns. With the kites, the festivities also soared high. And, so do the spirits of charged up onlooker. Kids had a gala time to look astonshingly at the train of 180 kites on a single string.



A train of kites with Indian national flag motif.

The lady partcipant from Thailand, who in her Balinese dresses enticed one and all, danced to the flight of her colourfully designed kites with uniquely held 24 strings. Another participant in her bright red coloured dress flying a kite in the shape of 'Garuda', a Hindu mythological character, attracted the local and national media personnel who was seen going ga-ga over taking her pictures clicked by making varied poses and postures. to catch the best shot.

A villager selling traditional stuff toys.

The kites, which are said to have been invented more than 2800 years back in China, have graduated to improvised 'ripstop' material and nylon/kavlar strings. The stalls put up by various participating kite clubs displayed their wonderfully designed kites, some colourful, some traditional and some with a social message. The live music, magic shows, Rajasthani dances, traditional food court and shops under the trees added much joy to the festivities.



Traditional dancers adding music to the environs.

Kasauli-A Welcome Break from Summer heat

Visiting Kasauli recently was a welcome break from the heat of the plains. Kasauli is a very small hill town in Solan District of Indian state of Himachal Pradesh. Located at a height of around 6000 ft from sea level, the town presents a very refreshing and soothing welcome to the visitors. A three day and two nights trip and no one wants to go back home…..such has been the attraction of the lovely, serene and tranquil environments. The kids enjoyed the most playing traditional games like Satapu, Pitthu and Kabaddi in the green lawn of the plush colonial cottage where we stayed. The adults joined in the games with the kids and became one of them…. The walnut and plum trees in the lawn added to the beauty of the surroundings.

First view of Kasauli on entrance from Dharampur

As luck would have it, the cottage gave us glimpses of the Sun as it rose early in the morning and set in the evening. This was the second time in my life when I could see both events clearly on the same day. The first time was during a visit to Puri town located on the Eastern Coast of India in the state of Odisha (then Orissa). Another chance we missed while we were at Kanyakumari on the southern end of Indian state of Tamil Nadu due to presence of clouds in the sky.

Sunrise over Kasauli Hills in Summer

At Kasauli, we were lucky to enjoy the sunrise with the family, however, there was a crowd during sunset. Viewing simultaneous rising of the Moon in the clear skies opposite the setting Sun was amazing.   The town appeared to sleep early and rise late as the closing timings of various facilities indicated.

Rising of the moon amidst trees at Kasauli

A very neat and clean hill station without much holiday crowd is boon for the visitors. The location of Kasauli is such that one can see many cities due to its height and location. While northern side gives views of Shimla, Dagshai and other cities located on the hills, Southern views take you to cities like Chandigarh, Panchkula, Pinjore, Baddi etc.

A stroll at stone tiled Kasauli Sadar Bazaar and nearby Pine Mall will give you an opportunity to take back home momentos from the hills. The tourist attractions at Kasauli include, a colonial church and Manki Point. However, every inch at this tiny town will give you a relaxation which no spa in the world could give.

Overall a very soothing and quiet visit……to be remembered again and again and worth visiting again and again.  

Mutiny by Irish Soldiers at Dagshai (India)

The story of mutiny goes like this. An independence struggle was unfolding in Ireland in 1920 as people wanted freedom from Britishers. This induced a large scale mutiny by Irish soldiers in British service to support freedom struggle. On 27^th June, 1920, Irish soldiers of 1^st Battalion of Connaught Rangers at British military barracks of Jalandhar (Punjab, India) started mutiny by refusing to return to military duty till British forces left Ireland, which was under martial law. Irish soldiers of a part of regiment based at Solan (around 260 km from Jalandhar) also joined the mutiny. 22 years old Private James Daly of Tyrrelpass County Westmeath acted as the spokesperson of the mutineers.



‘Martyrs for Ireland’ display boards at Dagshai Museum highlighting Irish Heroism

A display board at Dagshai Museum informs that Daly led a company of men who paraded outside the officer's mess, stating that "if you want to know who the leader is I am". The mutineers tried to capture armoury on 30^th June, 1920, however, their attempt was unsuccessful. The mutineers were fired upon and two Irish soldiers namely Private Peter Sears and Private Patrick Smyth, were killed in the encounter. Also, 75 of the mutineers were held and kept at Dagshai Prison.  The harsh conditions at then prison led to the death of Private John Miranda of Liverpool. The mutineers were later tried by court martial in September 1920. The court martial sentenced 14 of them to death and the balance were sentenced to life imprisonment. However, 13 of the death sentences were commuted to life imprisonment, whereas Daly, the leader of the Irish mutiny, was not spared from death. He was later executed by a firing squad in the courtyard of the prison on 2^nd November, 1920. Thus he became a martyr for Ireland.

Courtyard of Dagshai prison where Daly was executed

 

The Dagshai Museum states that in his last letter to his mother, Daly wrote "It is all for Ireland. I am not afraid to die". Daly made history by becoming the last member of the British Armed Forces to be executed for a military offence. He was later buried at the Dagshai graveyard. In year 1970, remains of Daly, Sears and Smyth were repatriated to Ireland and given a funeral with full military honours.

Wikipedia states that Private Sears and Private Smyth were buried at Solan, while Private Daly and Private John Miranda were buried at the Dagshai graveyard.  In 1970, the remains of Sears, Smyth and Daly were repatriated to Ireland by The National Graves Association and given a military funeral with full honours. A special monument in their honour has been erected at Glasnevin Cemetery, Dublin.

Central Prison at Dagshai (Himachal Pradesh, India)

While searching for a suitable accommodation to spend the night during our drive to Chandigarh-Shimla highway in India, we chanced upon a small hilltop town, known as Dagshai. The town, which comes on the right side of the highway while driving towards Shimla, is located at a height of 6,078 feet from sea level in northern state of Himachal Pradesh of India. The chance visit to Dagshai brought us to ‘Dagshai Prison’, which turned out to be a prominent historical place connected with the small town.



Inner view of Dagshai Prison

The prison has been converted into a museum on 13^th  October, 2011 and is a wonderful piece of English history in India. I had never heard the existence of this prison earlier, so was surprised to see such a building.

Entrance of Dagshai Museum

Dagshai Prison or Jail is a unique T-shaped jail which was constructed with part stone masonary at a cost of Rs. 72,875 in the year 1849 which was a princely sum at that time. The 20 feet high prison has 54 cellers each measuring 8 feet by 12 feet. The entire flooring of the prison is made up from high quallity seasoned teak wood which appeared intact even after more than 163 years of existance. This type of construction enabled easy hearing of the movements of the prisoners by guards on duty. Each celler has a teak wood gate on the inner side and an iron gate on the outer side. Cross iron alloy  bars are fitted inside these wooden doors due to which they became impregnable and the entire jail complex resembled a fortress. The iron gates of each celler were made of specially casted iron alloy to make it impossible for the prisoners to cut these gates for escape.

Solid Teak wood entrance of Dagshai Prison

Out of 54 cellers, 11 were converted to accommodate staff, 27 were made as common cells and 16 cellers were converted to solitary confinement cellers. The common cells have been provided with heavily barricated 1 feet by 2 feet size ventilators on top of the wall of the celler and underground vents which draw air from a pipeline with an opening into the outer wall. 

The solitary confinement cells were specially created  to provide harsh punishments to the highly indisciplined prisoners. These cellers are dark and suffocating as there is no access to natural light and the cellers have no ventilation. 

Novel techniques were used to punish the prisoners in the jail. Apart from the physical strains to the prisoners, sometimes inhuman punishments were also awarded to the prisoners for perceived indiscipline. In such a case, a prisoner was made to stand between two very closely located doors of the celler. both the doors were locked to ensure that the prisoner kept standing between two doors for long durations depriving him of rest.

Visiting Dagshai prison is a unique experience. A book is kept inside the entrance of  the prison alongwith a fountain pen to facilitate the visitors to pen down their experience of visting the jail. A young girl who visited the jail wrote "A very nice experience. Seen history with my own eyes. Really astonishing, raised goosebumps". 

The display board at the prison states that the jail acquired notoriety and an indelible place in history because of various significant prisoners sent to this jail over a period of time. The jail is known for Irish soldiers mutiny way back in year 1920.

Seva or Community Service

Seva is an essential ritual for one's moral upliftment and spiritual upbringing. In the pic, volunteers are seen performing Seva by making Roti (Indian Bread) for Langar (Community Kitchen) at a religious place in India. Seva is selfless service for community without expectations of any kind of reward. It is a mandatory part of community service. While there are various forms of Seva like tan (using one's hands, feet or body), man (mind, talent or prayer) and dhan (money, property or gold etc.). However, Seva by tan is considered as the supreme form of community service. Lakhs of devotees visit religious places for mental peace and spiritual strength. They pay their respect to the almighty and leave. However, very few are fortunate to get  an opportunuty to do Seva and spend their time and energy for the community. In a langar, varied type of Seva opportunities are available. These include activities like cooking of food (vegetable or dal (cereal)), preparation of rotis or rice, cleaning and arranging space where people have food, distribution of utensils, cooked food or water, cleaning or washing of utensils like plate, glass or spoon etc. Engaging in each activity is filled with a Sense of Giving which in return gives no rewards, but, immense satisfaction, spiritual security, mental peace and love for human beings. Seva can be performed irrespective of caste, creed and status.  It can be organised anywhere and anytime. Many celebrate occasions like birthdays, marriage annivesary etc. engaging in Seva at a religious place or organising similar community service on their own.