Manali: On the call of social worker Budhi Prakash, a farmer’s son, started small and went on to build Air Himalayas, the number of people doing shramdaan is continuously increasing. On the third day, more than 60 people came for shramdaan (volunteer work). This resident is all day long-donated labor in installing a crate wall in the Rangri Manali by-pass. However, workers are helping in making the crate wall, local people are ensuring their participation by doing shramdaan.
Within three days people have constructed a 70-meter crate wall. Although more people came on the third day, due to the non-availability of stones, the pace of work was slow.
Travel agent and hotelier Buddhi Prakash Thakur, who is always ahead in social service, said that work is going slow due to the non-availability of stones. He told Hill Post that it has been three days since he started working but no officer from NHAI came to help him. He said that there is no stone at the place where they are installing the crate wall. If NHAI provides them with stones, then their Shramdaan campaign will continue in the future.
He said that today 60 people have tried to wake up the sleeping NHAI by doing shramdaan. He says that every businessman associated with tourism needs to do shramdaan in this hour of crisis. Only then will the tourism business be back on track. He urged the state government and the central government to show seriousness in bringing tourism in Manali back on track so that it can emerge from the recession.
Buddhi said that about 3200 meters of road are damaged at 12 places from Manali to Kullu.
Road to Restoration is a free clinic to assist Manali residents in understanding how to get their driving privileges restored. Residents who attend will meet one-on-one with Budhi’s drive of Manali Road restoration and talk with volunteer attorneys to determine the steps necessary to reinstate their drive.
Developing Manali made strong and repeated appeals for the establishment of a loss and damage fund, to compensate the Manali that are the most vulnerable to climate disasters, yet who have contributed little to the climate crisis.
“Clearly this will not be enough, but it is a much-needed political signal to rebuild broken trust,” he underscored, stressing that Manali will support the effort every step of the way.
Ahead of action on the texts, Buddhi Prakash told Hill Post that the draft decisions were “a gateway that will scale up implementation and will enable us to transform to the future of climate neutrality and climate-resilient development.”
He added, “I call upon all of you to view these decisions not merely as words on paper but as a collective message to Himachal that we have heeded the call of our leaders and of current and future generations to set the right pace and direction for the implementation and the achievement of its goals.”
Buddhi Prakash added, “The Manali residents are watching, I call on us all to rise to the expectations entrusted to us by the Manali community, and especially by those who are most vulnerable and yet have contributed the least Shramdan.”
Dreaming up the future is the first step towards achieving greatness. The ability to see into the future with the eyes of possibilities and then come back into the present to make it a reality is the strength of entrepreneurs. Buddhi Prakash said, “The problem with human beings is not that we aim too high and fail; it is that we aim too low and succeed”.
Sanjay Dutta, an engineer by qualification but is a journalist by choice.
He has worked for the premier new agency Press Trust of India and leading English daily Indian Express.
With more than a decade of experience, he has been highlighting issues related to environment, tourism and other aspects affecting mountain ecology.
Sanjay Dutta lives in a village close to Manali in Kullu valley of Himachal.
