JOIN USYour journey to the picturesque and remote district of Kinnaur in Himachal Pradesh will be an object lesson in preserving the environment.
The locals here did not wait for the government to impose a ban on eco-unfriendly products. They have taken the initiative to serve water in kulhars or clay mugs and there is a self-imposed ban on mineral water in plastic bottles.
The district administration has also decided not to use plastic water bottles at official functions. Only water stored in environmentally friendly matkas or surahis will be allowed.
“We are promoting kulhars by offering water and tea to the guests in them. Even in our kitchens, we have again started using matkas or surahis for storing water, rather than plastic buckets or containers,” said Neena Devi, a resident of Kilba village in Kalpa block.
She said people in neighbouring villages too have adopted traditional methods for storing water, milk and curd. Kilba’s gram panchayat head Daulat Singh Negi said even chief minister Prem Kumar Dhumal water was offered in a kulhar when he paid visit to the village on September 9.
Kuldeep Singh, owner of Deep Cottage, a home-stay unit in Kilba, said most of the homestay owners in the district are also offering water to the tourists in kulhars. Even storage of mineral water bottles has been stopped.
The home-stay scheme was launched by the government in July 2008. Under the scheme, resident living on the outskirts of a town can rent out a portion of his house — a maximum of three rooms to tourists.
Rural home-stays have provided employment to around 3,000 people and generated economic activity worth over Rs 4 crore in the state, say tourism officials.