the clouds came to rest alongside the flowing alaknanda as dusk took over the valley - at Karnaprayag to Devprayag, Uttarakhand

Dusk comes up quite suddenly in the Himalayas, and there does not seem to be any difference between winter or summer at night. We were driving back, from Karnaprayag to Rudraprayag, to go ahead to Devprayag and on to Rishikesh, some years back. Barely 4.30 pm at Karnaprayag, a traffic jam delayed us as we crossed across the Alaknanda River. And by 5.15 pm, it was beginning to darken, and a drizzle had started fogging up the road. The vehicles in front of us were our only guide to understanding the dimension of the road, and the dangerous slopes to the valleys below. 

The Alaknanda River goes all alongside the road from Karnaprayag to Rudraprayag, and then keeps going away and coming back up to Devprayag. As we drove slowly alongside the river, a beautiful panorama was playing out. All the clouds seemed to come down the higher slopes of the mountains, and by 6 pm, they were below the road. A bit later, and some kilometres further, one could see the clouds coming to rest all over the river, and soon enough, the river was not to be seen. We could only guess that it was the river, because of the clouds resting over it. 

It is said that Parvati, is thus known, because she is forever the Goddess of the Parvat, ie the Himalayas, and she would never want to leave the embrace of the mountains, who are her parents. And as I watched, it seemed like the Goddess came down silently, etherally, gently descending, and came to embrace her sister, the river, and that they rested peacefully at dusk within the valleys of the Himalayas. I looked above, the peaks shone in the moonlight, and one could be assured that Maheshwara, or Gangadhara himself, looked down and was pleased. 

this nation belongs to these school girls who keep walking daily in the Himalayas - near Rudraprayag, Uttarakhand

I am always amazed to see school kids, especially school girls, in excellently turned out school uniforms, all the way from northern Uttarkashi ie Yamnotri in the west through the Himalayas to Sikkim and Dibrugarh in the east. One can spot them early in the morning, walking in the biting cold, dressed up smartly, trekking at least 2 to 10 kms daily - one way - and back, to reach their school without fail. 

They walk alongside fast moving traffic, risking eve teasers and various other problems. Most of them, of all ages, carry heavy school bags, and yet look quite happy and cheerful. They put to shame, all the urban school children, who need school buses, or their parents or chauffeurs or whosoever, to drop them and pick them back from school. India belongs to these courageous and brave girls of the Himalayas. 

At least, on two locations, one at Khansali, in Yamnotri, and later, near Karnaprayag, I was able to meet them very early in the morning. I was wearing at least three layers of warm clothes, and I was totally humbled by a tiny tyke, possibly about 8 years old, in excellent school uniform and seemingly proud of it, with splendid creases, and a heavy school bag. This small lady of India, all of 8 years old, did not have any warm clothes on her. She was smiling and glowing, and I am sure, that some time in the future, we will hear about her and be happy about our India. 

This photograph is from the highway between Devprayag and Rudraprayag, before Srinagar, in Uttarakhand. 

women grass-cutters near Karnaprayag, Uttarakhand

From sometime in September 2009, on the road near Karnaprayag, in Uttarakhand. These are the lower Himalayas, and on the Char Dham route (= the four pilgrimage location route). They are a regular sight and reflect on the dependence of the local women on biomass. They seem to work through the day, traveling further and about, harvesting fodder and journeying back with a heavy headload. I had a number of questions to myself, for I could not bring myself to stop them and ask them or delay them. 

We were traveling from Haridwar by road through Rishikesh, Devprayag, Karnaprayag and Rudraprayag to Adi Badri. It was a most fascinating route, complete with surprises on every blind turn. Nowhere else in India would one come to such a limitless bounty of diversity and convergence. 

Hats off, salaam and respects to the hill-women of the remote villages of Uttarakhand for having struggled to just live out their lives in the rugged Himalayas. The strongest of Indians.