ATREE and Beekeeping in India – West Bengal – Darjeeling Region

This is a work in progress as I have time to update from my recollection and notes from my trip to India for the month of October and early November 2016.    Some photos are by freelance photographer Saad Amer – and are credited to him on each one.   The remainder were taken by myself.

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Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment ( ATREE ) provides initiatives to help rural residents in India to do better for themselves.  A system of education to teach ecological methods of living and farming – with a goal of the residents being self-sufficient with new knowledge and skills to provide better living conditions and health.

One challenge ATREE took on – was better lung health.    In areas where cattle dung is used for cooking (and home heating) fuel, the smoke is usually emitting directly to the living areas in the homes, and residents often have respiratory problems.    ATREE provided ways for rocket-stoves to be installed into the homes.   The rocket stoves burn hotter with the same fuel – fully burning it.  The fumes/exhaust are also exhausted to the outside of the homes – removing the un-burned dung fumes from the living space – immediately improving the quality of the air breathed inside the homes.

Other initiatives that were/are in place:

• Clean Water Initiatives – for both supply and discharge (sewer)
• Composting – to improve soil nutrition
• Worm Growing – (to aide in composting)
• Mushroom Growing (the villages where I was – were on “Rishi Road”
• Crop Farming to reduce landslides (choose crops with deeper root systems to hold soil)
• Beekeeping

In 2016, I was invited to help an initiative led by the leadership of ATREE to assist in assessing the beekeeping and honeybee knowledge of the farmers in the mountainside villages, and to come up with a curriculum based on what their current knowledge is, and where I think it should be – for them to become self-sufficient with the raising of bees for their home-farm crop pollination.   My trip to India was scheduled for the month of October 2016 – with my time in the Darjeeling area to be about 1 week to assess, and write a suggested curriculum.

After spending a week in Agra, (Uttar Pradesh (UP) state of India) – I flew from New Delhi to the Bagdogra Airport (military airport) in the Siliguri area of West Bengal.    I was picked up at the airport by a member of the ATREE team, and the slow drive from Bagdogra airport to Darjeeling was started.

My lodging was arranged by ATREE for the week.   I did not realize that everywhere I went – if staying in a “homestay” or a hotel/motel – I would need a paper copy of my passport to give them – as their government requires the documentation to be kept for visitors.   Next trip – I’ll make sure to have plenty of copies with me.

In a country as large as India – they only have one time-zone.   That way (as was explained to me – I’m not sure if they were joking or not) businessmen could not claim “Oh – I missed a meeting because I was in another time zone and didn’t realize time was different for the meeting” – when they’re all on one time zone – there’s one excuse eliminated from the possibilities.    This is a long way of saying – the 2nd week in October – in the Himalayan foothills of Darjeeling and surrounding villages – the sun rose EARLY.  I woke at 5am(ish) and went outside – and saw the glory of Mt Kangchenjunga in the distance to the North of Darjeeling.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Day 1 – Took us to the small villages of Upper Bhutia Busty as well as Lalung, then finally to Rampuria Forest Village – where I was hosted by a family for several nights.

Upper Bhutia Busty

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Lalung

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Rampuria Forest Village