Highway to Ajmer

Tuesday September 30th 2008

Here goes September.. in the midst of Ramadan I did not realize its onset..

Let us first understand why I talked about the trees of Rajasthan..& why the Rajas or the rulers planted trees..
Rajasthan and its plains is a sandy desert with River SUTLEJ in the North West and the Aravalli Range in the East; The Indus Valley in the West & The Rann of Kutch in the South.
All of this by and large is a semi arid area.
Cultivation is done in small patches and irrigations provided by small streams…which originate from Aravalli during the monsoons.
There are many salt water lakes in the Eastern side eg the Sambhar Lake on the border of Jaipur.

The Aravallis, are one of the oldest FOLD mountain ranges in the world.
This range lies parallel to the direction of the south west monsoon winds.
The Aravalli Hills are low in height so they are unable to stop the moisture laden winds.
This makes Rajasthan a dry area.

The perceptive & visionary rulers of Rajasthan were aware of the scanty rainfall conditions – and over the years these rulers, tried to plant shady trees on highway and roads …

To connect Jaipur to Ajmer** distance of 127 kilometers to be exact ....the highway had shady lush trees ..
14,000 : Fourteen Thousand- NEEM-trees were chopped down indiscriminately, to make a six lane highway .
Over hundreds of years these NEEM trees had grown to stately heights… with thick abundant leaves.. .. & witnessed the pilgrims progresses and advancement to Ajmer , a million times over hundreds of years…
Trees that sheltered birds –Trees that gave shade and protected the traveler from the blazing Rajasthani sun.
According to Hindu mythological scriptures,.. NEEM is a sacred tree ,….
It is revered & respected, as Gods reside in these trees and NEEM cleanses the air ..
Thus cutting of a NEEM Tree or a Banyan Tree is a sin.
Moreover NEEM is a medicinal plant. .. protected and patented now in the USA.
A vision has been smashed in the name of progress ...
The youth of today who lives for today will feel it is advancement.. “wow six lane highway!”
"Why think of tomorrow attitude" : cannot help Rajasthan to breathe in the future…
This erratic cut and build, concrete structures or heavy roads is not progress..
Again mankind has NO right to destroy or take away habitat & the shelter of birds.

In present day India, the only institution that regards conservation by protecting and planting trees : The Armed Forces.
It’s the only institution or a body as a whole which not only protects India’s borders & also the environment.
The Armed Force's cantonment areas are the greenest all over India.
These cantonment areas are lush and green with indigenous , native plants and thick trunked trees.
As a result, these cantonment areas are the lungs of each city in India.

**Ajmer is a small Pilgrimage city famous for the tomb of Hazrat Mu'inuddin Chishti.
It is 132 kms. south-west of Jaipur and 198 kms. east of Jodhpur.
It is connected by road to Jaipur, Jodhpur, Bikaner, Udaipur and Kota.
Sufi saint Khwaja Moin-ud-din Chishti has a prominent place among the spiritual healers of the world. Hazrat Khwaja Moinuddin -was born in 1142 A.D. in Sanjar (Iran).
He is a SYMBOL OF LOVE, HARMONY AND PEACE.
Muinuddin lived in Ajmer from 1190 till death in 1232

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Trees Of Jaipur III

Image
Wednesday October 8th 2008. 1. KHEJARI : Local Name. Botanical name: Prosopis Cineraria Druce. The Khejri tree is the State Tree of Rajasthan, India. It’s a thorny small tree…. deep-rooted making it thus drought resistant. Khejri tree is sacred & is considered lucky to grow at home. It has many uses . .. Its thorny branches are cut and used as a fence to keep animals away from crops, The leaves are dried and used for feed and its bean-like fruit can be eaten ripe or unripe. The wood is used as fuel. 2. Castor Tree : Castor bean, Castor oil plant, Wonder tree • Hindi : Arandi Botanical name: Ricinus communis The castor tree, is an upright, tropical is a small tree, grows up to 30 feet tall. The Green leaves have uneven edge. The flat seeds are in a seedpod that burst when ripen. When mature the oblong fruit turns brown. The seeds of castor oil plant, are very poisonous…,however, once prepared commercially castor oil contains no toxic characteristics.. The oil extracted from the bea
Read more

Trees Of Jaipur I: Indian Gooseberry

Image
Saturday 4th October 2008 Common name: Amla, Indian Gooseberry. Botanical name: Phyllanthus emblica. 1. A mla (pronounced Awanlah) {N is silent} Is an indigenous tree to the Indian subcontinent, Amla is a small to medium sized deciduous tree (plants that shed their leaves annually at the approach of a season of cold or drought), reaching 8 to 18 m in height, the fruit is edible of the same name. The Tree is pleasing to look at….with crooked trunk and spreading branches drooping down. The leaves are simple, nearly stalk less and closely set along slender branchlets. The leaves are often mistaken for leaflets of pinnate leaves (describes a leaf that has a central axis or stem with parts branching off it). The flowers are small, greenish-yellow or pinkish. The fruit is nearly spherical, light greenish yellow, quite shiny and hard looking, with 6 vertical stripes or furrows. Ripening in autumn, the berries are harvested by hand after climbing to upper branches bearing the fruits. Sour &
Read more

Gratifying Garden

Image
Please click on the pictures to enlarge Front Lawn Cacti and Aloe Plant Side Veranda Lawn To Go Green Is Positive The saplings planted today will grow tomorrow. As a consequence it is: Rewarding Satisfying Heartwarming Pleasing Munificent Bountiful..and then wait .. Serenity will be bestowed with patience and persistence.
Read more