विकसता विकसता......

The Last Village or The First Village! This year's Republic Day was special for me. I was at the last village ‘Kibithu’, on the Indo-China border. With local villagers, Indo-Tibetan Border Security Force, and Indian Army.  I participated in a joint flag-hoisting and cultural program organized at Kibithu. In the evening, we visited Wacha Post, the last military post on the McMahon Line of the India-China border. In China, across the border, we could see village houses, developing roads, and mobile towers. During this trip, we met with government officials, security forces officials, NGO workers, members of women's self-help groups, school teachers, medical staff, and villagers from nearby villages and settlements along the border, and learned about their culture and different challenges. The purpose of the trip was to understand the ‘Vibrant Village’ Scheme and explore opportunities to participate in it. The Vibrant Village Programme is an important and priority project of t

  आखिरी गांव या पहला गांव ! या वर्षीचा प्रजासत्ताक दिवस विशेष होता. भारत चीन सीमेवरील शेवटच्या गावात ;   ‘ किबिथू’ मध्ये स्थानिक गावकरी , भारत-तिब्बत सीमा सुरक्षा बल आणि भारतीय स्थलसेना यांच्याबरोबर एकत्रित ध्वजारोहण आणि सांस्कृतिक कार्यक्रमात सहभागी होता आले. त्याच दिवशी संध्याकाळी भारत-चीन सीमेवरील मॅकमोहन सीमारेषेवरील शेवटचे ठाणे ‘वाचा पोस्ट’ ला भेट दिली. सीमेपलिकडील चीनमधील गावातील घरं , विकसित होत असलेले रस्ते , मोबाइल टॉवर पाहता आले. या प्रवासात सीमेजवळील गावे-वस्त्यांमधील   शासकीय अधिकारी , सुरक्षा दलांचे अधिकारी , स्वयंसेवी संस्थांचे कार्यकर्ते , महिला बचत गटाच्या सदस्या , शालेय शिक्षक , वैद्यकीय कर्मचारी , गावकरी यांना भेटता आले. त्यांची संस्कृती , त्यांच्या अडचणी जाणून घेता आल्या. प्रवासाचे निमित्त होते ‘ व्हायब्रंट विलेज योजना’ समजून घेणे आणि त्यात सहभागच्या संधी शोधणे. ‘ व्हायब्रंट विलेज योजना’ भारत सरकारचा महत्त्वाचा आणि प्राधान्याचा प्रकल्प आहे. भारताच्या उत्तर सीमेवरील हिमाचल प्रदेश , उत्तराखंड , सिक्कीम , अरुणाचल प्रदेश आणि लडाखमधील खेड्यांचा सर्वांगीण विकास करण्याच

  सह वीर्यं करवावहै।         Receiving a video on WhatsApp Chat is a frequent occurrence, but this particular one brought back a flood of cherished memories from one of the study tours back in 2001. The video was showcasing glimpses of Kokan and Konkani food, I couldn't resist sharing the video with students who had accompanied me on that trip. To my delight, they too remembered it vividly and reminisced their memories! Sir, I had eaten Sandan (idli/ cake like local sweet made by adding jackfruit juice) for the first time! It was a simple yet yummy flavourful dish that I had never tasted before! We all together peeled jackfruit! I enjoyed listening to Ponkshe sir narrate Antubarwa at night! A magical experience that I will never forget. Sir, for me the most exhilarating experience of the trip was riding a small boat to reach a large vessel in the harbour and climbing a rope ladder to board it. It was quite an adventure! I remember exploring the estuary, mangroves and t