Killing the Supply Chain for Rhino Horn

Rhino is the pride of Assam and also famous for single horned in the World. But in Assam, people always raised their voice to save the Rhino. Because in Assam Rhino is not safe. They were killed by the hunters day by day. Government has taken some necessary actions but it is not reflected in the results. Now the question arises as to how to save the rhino? Before we search for the solution we should know why is the rhino killed, why do poachers risks their life, where do they export, and what is the reason for the demand?

We can't find the solutions without knowing the answer to these questions. Poachers kill rhinos as the rhino is considered precious in the international market. It means they pay a huge amount of money for it. Rhino horns are believed to be used as aphrodisiac, treatment for cancer and instant cure for hangovers, body pain to name a few. Although nothing is scientifically proven yet in countries like China, Vietnam, Cambodia and other South East Asian countries the demand for this horn is meteoric.

Also, it is impossible to hunt these rhinos without the help of local people or guards and so people in the fringe villages are lured with money by organized smugglers who find a way out to export these horns to the international market.

In Kaziranga National park, the same thing is happening.  As a result, one of the major issues of concern for wildlife conservation authority of Kaziranga is to protect the animal and prevent the trade of prohibited wildlife. For this, the officials reinforced the patrolling in the forest and more forest personnel’s are now employed with better equipped weapons to fight out with the poachers.

Steps should be taken to curb the demand for this and awareness  should be spread on stopping this illegal exporting of rhino horns.Perhaps with stringent measures adopted over the coming years and creating awareness in the global market on curbing the demands ofsuch horns, some amount of headway could be made in the process of conservation.

Gunajit Baishya

A trip to the land of happiness

I love traveling. It not only lifts my spirit, but also enriches me both mentally and physically. Over and above, my hobby of traveling has shaped and broadened my worldview. Out of that urge to explore new horizon, I decided to travel to Bhutan. Bhutan is a small and locked country in the foothills of mighty Himalayas. One can travel to Bhutan by road as well as by air.

The only airport of Bhutan is situated in the beautiful valley of Paro which is about 50 km away from Thimphu, the capital of Bhutan. But I personally prefer train journey that is why, I boarded a train from Guwahati and got down at Hasimara Railway Station, which is nearly railway station to Indo-Bhutan border. From Hasimara I took a taxi and went to Phuentscholing, the border town of Bhutan. After taking permit in the immigration office in Phuentscholing, I started my journey to Thimphu.

Thimphu is not only the capital but also the largest city of the kingdom of Bhutan. It is situated at the western central part of Bhutan. The city is spread out laterally in a north-south direction on the west bank of Wang Chuu river. The culture of Bhutan is fully reflected in Thimphu, be it literature, religion,customs,national dress code, the monestic practices, music, dance or media. Thimphu contains most of the political buildings in Bhutan, including the National Assembly of the newly formed parliamentary democracy and Dechencholing palace, the official residence of the king. Another important landmark of Thimphu is Buddha Dordenma.

 It is a gigantic, meditative statue of lord Buddha that sits overlooking the southern path of Thimphu. At a height of 169 feet, it is the largest Buddha statue in the world. It can be seen from practically anywhere when driving around Thimphu.

After spending a couple of days in Thimphu, I headed for Paro, the 2^nd largest city in Bhutan.It is historic town with many sacred sites. The Dungtse Lhakhang is a 15th century temple situated in Paro. There is a royal palace named Ugyen Peril palace. Member of royal famliy take rest in that palace when passing. About 10 km outside Paro town is the famous Taktshang Hermitage or Tigers’ nest, on the face of a sheer 3281 feet cliff.

This is highly sacred to the Bhutanese people because they believe that Guru Rinpoche , the father of Bhutanese Buddhism  landed here on the back tigress. After visiting Tigers’ nest I started my homeward journey with an enriched mind.

Bhutan is a calm, quiet and happy country. Bhutan measures prosperity by gauging its citizens’ happiness level, not by the GDP(Gross development process).The phrase GNH(Gross national happiness) is a measurment of  collective happiness of the nation. It is a term which was coined by Bhutans’ 4^th dragon king Gigma Singye Wangchuck in 1972.  This is based on the cultural values and the deeply rooted love for humanity and life which us Indians need to learn a lot from.

Abinash Kalita

The Misunderstood- When behavior meets disappointment

She is a commoner, like you and me, she wakes up every morning in the hope to be loved. After all, who doesn't want to be loved, right?

I met her a few years ago, but it feels as I have known her for aeons. We had this instant connection, it was serendipity. Her charm is bound to sway you, make you feel happy, and her aura was kind and affectionate. Amidst all, there was this deep longing in her eyes despite her amiable grace and friendly ways. The world had failed her in every way possible; her greatest gift now has become a bitter disappointment.

On an otherwise typical day, I had this burning curiosity to pursue the reason for the solitude in her eyes that everyone surpassed seamlessly. Her deep voice still resonates in my ears, her answer still lingers "…because no one understands me."! I failed to understand as to why has the world turned its back to this gentle soul? Must a beautiful person like her be not cared for? Isn't there hope no more?

Being taken for granted is nobody's cup of tea, yet there she was, day after day, being disposable. She kept it together for a while now. She always uses to work very hard, whenever she had to. Always first in taking responsibilities .Only soul reason for doing this to keep her mates happy. It’s not that people don’t smile, or become excited after seeing her work, but they forget her every time when the work is done.  That's what breaks her apart. She tries to remember, but it kills her inside. Even if she tries sharing it with someone, though that person can give her advice, or she can be ok for that period of time, but she still breaks down every night thinking what mistake she has done or what wrong happened.

Human nature or human behavior always tends to change with the surroundings or inner feelings. Mood swings, depression, anger, happiness everything is caused by the circumstances faced by the person.  We always try to fill gaps with the information we have without thinking for a moment whether the information we have is enough or not and that’s why many people fail to understand others correctly.

Any number of isolated behavior problems can represent adolescent problems and delinquency-shoplifting, truancy, a fight in school, drug or alcohol ingestion. Sometimes, kids can't easily explain why they act the way they do. They may be just as confused about it as the adults, or they simply see delinquent behaviors as appropriate ways to deal with what they experience. Parents and loved ones may feel scared, angry, frustrated, or hopeless. They may feel guilty and wonder where they went wrong. All these feelings are normal, but it is important to understand that there is help available to troubled kids and their families.

When it comes to helping a loved one with mental health problems, providing them with quality information on their disorder is essential. Many mental disorders go undiagnosed because the sufferer is simply unaware their symptoms aren’t normal. They might feel the need to internalize the problems they’re having for fear others won’t understand, or they might not see the pattern of dysfunction their behavior is causing in their everyday life. It’s vital for friends and family members to speak up when they see a problem because that’s often the only way a person will realize the need for help.

Nibedita Saikia

National Science Congress: A lifetime of experiences

National Children's Science Congress (NCSC) is a nationwide Science Communication programme which began in the year 1993. It is a forum for children of the age-group of 10-17 years, both from formal school system as well as from out of school, to exhibit their creativity and innovativeness,  particularly their ability to solve a societal problem experienced locally using the method of science. When I was a student of class 8(2008) I had an opportunity of taking part in the NCSC and thus began a memory that would last a lifetime.

With lots of new hope, positive energy I started my first ever train journey with the Nalberian brigade for the State Level National Children Science Congress which was supposed to be held in Jorhat. I used to always suffer from motion sickness so I was pretty nervous to embark on a  long train journey.

We were travelling in the Morioni Express.  Our co-ordinator knew about my situation so gave me extra care . soon some members began singing songs and some started dancing too and soon I got rid of uneasiness and felt better.

We finally reached our destination and the most interesting part was that the management team had arranged for staying at Normal School for Nalberian team which produced some legendry Assamese personality like Syed Abdul malik, Nalinibala Devi, The magician of Dhol Moghai Ojha etc.

 The 4 days schedule of the National Science Congress began with flag hosting and march past of child scientist who came from difference places of Assam. The moto of the N.C.S.C. 2008 was ‘Planet Earth is Our Home: Explore,Care & Share’.

The entire schedule was packed with project presentation part , different kinds of scientific competition, scientific model competition, question-answer session with eminent scientist to cultural night. It was one of the most thrilling experiences of my life. I became friends with lots of child scientist from difference places of Assam, shared about our projects and also about our own district, culture ,tradition among others.

We visited some historical places of Jorhat, especially the Tocklai Tea Research Center(Asia’s first tea research centre), Cinnamora Tea Estate, which is Assam’s first tea estate, Thengal Bhavan from where the first daily newspaper in India was published, North East Institute of Science and Technology and Jorhat Gymkhana Club, which ranks amongst the oldest clubs in India having served a venue for conducting horse races. Though time couldn’t permit us to visit Gibbon Wildlife Sanctuary and Majuli(World’s largest river island).

The sessions were most interesting and the best part of the event was the question and answer session with the eminent scientist Dr. Jitendra Nath Goswami, the Principal Scientist of Chandrayaan-1 .

In the final night we performed cultural activities and were appreciated by all. From there we returned home with our hearts filled with memories to last a lifetime.

 For me National Children Science Congress is a platform which created a scientific temperament among children and  prompts  children to think over societal problems, ponder over its causes and subsequently try and solve the same.

This involves close and keen observation, raising pertinent questions, formulating a hypothesis, building models/road maps, predicting solutions on the basis of a model, trying out various possible options and arriving at an optimum solution using experimentation and testing, field work, research and innovative ideas. It also encourages a sense of discovery among children. It emboldens the participants to question many aspects of our progress and development and express their findings in their vernacular language.

Derajuddin Ahmed

Drama that motivates

Mobile theatre of Assam may be considered as an upgraded version of a refined dramatic experience and  is technically upgraded and commercially advanced.

Being a  regular visitor of mobile theatres I have realized that, it is a great entertainment media especially for rural people. Coming from a rural set up,  I feel the importance of this means of communication and realize that the presence of regional language creates an immediate impact on the poeple. Mobile theatres have occupied the socio-cultural life of Assam today. A theatre is a place where one can receive both education and entertainment at the same time. Moreover, this is a platform where people, without formal education can get any social message, political knowledge and awareness on the administration process. Mobile theatre is a tool of social transformation. Even today, this means of communication has a widespread influence upon the way people think and act.

Assam is a land where different types of ethnicities, tribes and castes are merged to form the great Assamese society. My personal belief is that, mobile theatre is can be a potential tool for promoting value based ideas and establish the sense of unity and integrity among the common people.

The Vaisnavite renaissance advocated by Sankardeva and Madhavdeva brought a rapid change in the socio-cultural life of Assamese people. Sankardev’s innovative ‘bhaona’ has been the most pleasant and satisfying community task of the Assamese society for ages. The performance of a bhaona in itself is an inspiration to the community as a whole. This has brought a new theatrical movement called Yatra, especially in the districts of lower region of Assam.

The mobile troops consists of nearly one hundred fifty people belonging to different parts of the state. It is really interesting to notice that all the people of mobile troops during their long voyage never think of individual interest. Rather, they think as a community.

In villages  mobile theatres are usually set up during the month of December when all people becomes free of their agricultural activities or during occasions like  Raas festival, Durga puja, village fairs, etc The mobile theatre not only has visual entertainment but also directs the youth towards imbibing dramatic skills creating room for employment.

Quite interestingly, the play does not end after the fall of the curtains or after the departure of actors from the stage but rather it opens their minds stimulating various ideas and thoughts in this process

Himakshi Borah