Silver crowns to be awarded to the winner and runners up of the Best Ecologist Award -2016 (Ghasiyari) by Chetna Andolan were released here on Thursday. As in the first competition, the winner will be awarded a silver crown along with a cash prize-- of ` 1, 01,000 in the competitive event adjudged on the basis of quantity of grass cut by the competitor (Ghasiyari) in fixed time. The competition and award is aimed not merely at eliciting focus on and rewarding women cutting grass for fodder and collecting plants, traditionally called Ghasiyari, but also on emphasising on and acknowledging the role of Ghasiyaris in the socio-cultural and ecological sphere or traditional mountain society in the state, said the competition organisers.
Trepan Singh Chauhan of Chetna Andolan said that in honour of the women of Uttarakhand and their struggles for dignity, Chetna Andolan is holding its second competition for the Best Ecologist Award. More than 2000 women from over 250 villages are expected to participate in the competition. Members of the intelligentsia along with representatives of Akhori village in Bhilangana block of Tehri district released the silver crowns and silver coins that will be awarded to the winners of the competition among Ghasiyaris being held in Bilangana block in December. Thousands of women from hundreds of villages are expected to participate in the competition. The prizes will consist of silver crowns and coins along with cash prize of ` 1,01,000 to the winner, ` 51,000 to the first runner up and ` 21,000 to the second runner up.
The competition organizers state that Ghasiyaris have protected Uttarakhand's forests for hundreds of years and have a deep, intimate understanding of the ecosystem. “They have also been at the forefront of every struggle to protect the state and its resources, from the Chipko Andolan and Uttarakhand statehood movement to the ongoing struggles against dams and industrial projects opposed by the public. It is their heroism that has protected the mountains and rivers that feed all of north India. Yet till date they suffer grinding poverty and exploitation, and both the Central and State governments connive to deprive them of their rights. Most of all, both governments continue to grossly violate the 2006 Forest Rights Act, of which the foremost beneficiaries would be the Ghasiyaris,” said Chauhan.
The competition has already begun presently underway in all villages of Bhilangana block till December 7. Between December 8 and 18, competitive rounds will be held in each of the 11 Nyay Panchayats in the block. The top three participants from the villages of that Nyay Panchayat will then compete against each other. On December 22, the top three position holders from each of the 11 Nyay Panchayat competitions will participate in the final round in Akhori. Apart from the silver crowns and cash award to the top three position holders, all 33 finalists will each receive a silver coin, said Shankar Gopalakrishnan of Chetna Andolan.