All what is serene and natural shall thrive for eternity. The enchanting expanses of UT of J&K aren’t merely about mountains draped in green but also about spaces dotted with waterbodies called wetlands. As listed in the wetlands and water body directory, the UT houses around 565 wetlands/lakes out of which 415 lie in the Kashmir division while the rest 150 are in Jammu. But the richness is at the risk of slipping into the oblivion as anthropogenic chaos, and its manifestations like unplanned urbanisation, pollution poses an existential risk for the water bodies. Experts, environmentalists and civil society members…
Author: Syed Tooba
The Tulip bloom may be seasonal but the efforts behind the bloom aren’t restricted to a particular season…” The 2022 edition of the Asia’s largest Tulip Festival has recently concluded at the Indira Gandhi memorial Tulip Garden (IGMTG), Srinagar, Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir (J&K UT). Expressing the jubilance on the success of the festival, Incharge and head of the management staff, Dr.Inam tells The Voices, “It has been a great festival this year as we have witnessed a footfall of around 3.60 lakh visitors which is the highest ever since the opening of the garden”. He attributed the success…
Spring is in full bloom in the heavens of Kashmir. The folds and faults of the valley seems to have been embellished with diverse coloured flowerets especially those of the almonds and the Tulips. To add to this spring fervor, the Tulip Festival-2022 is on a roll in the Kashmir valley’s famous Indira Gandhi Memorial Tulip Garden. Previously a Model Floriculture center, known locally as Siraj Bagh, the Indira Gandhi Memorial Tulip garden was opened in the year 2007, with an aim to promote floriculture and reinvigorate the tourism sector of the valley. The Voices presents the shades of Tulip Festival-…
Thumbelina’s red house The breathtaking view is manifestation of colour infused in consuming hill topography. At this time of the year the local shepherds also bring their sheep to graze in these fields. The Voices brings you the surreal beauty of the Karewa soils in the ongoing spring season. The Karewa soil of Pampore area in Kashmir Valley is known for the cultivation of the world famous Kashmiri Saffron, a culinary delight with a distinctive flavour and colour. But what remains a lesser known fact is that in spring season, i.e. March & April, these soils are host to the…
The iconic Shikaras are sailing in the troubled waters. Kashmir based Ramsar site, Wular lake, an apple of tourist’s eyes and once a flourishing biodiversity hotspot, now is silently slipping into the folds of anthropogenic chaos. The haphazard dumping of untreated municipal solid waste along the banks of the lake has orchestrated the recent round of crisis. “It all began during the COVID-19 lockdown in March 2020, when Municipal Commission (MC) Sopore started dumping the Municipal Solid waste collected from Sopore town close to the banks of Wular lake,” tells Ajaz Ahmad Dar, Member, Central Auqaf Committee, Tarzu, Sopore. …