Nature Tourism Uttarakhand,Eco Tourism Services,Nature Tourism Services,India,Service Provider

Know Us

Kanda Fabled Fairyland /is a land of fairs and festivals, legends and mythology, valley and glades, verdant forests, biodiversity and wildlife, birds and animals, flowers and butterflies, all combine to make a sum of delight, unsurpassed elsewhere. Nature has been at its bountiful in endowing Kanda with exquisite tourist sites and scenic grandeur.

Opportunity providing as-- Community based Eco tourism, Nature / Fun tourism, Heritage / Craft tourism, Spiritual / Cultural tourism, Voluntary / Social participation tourism, Film shooting/ Nature scenic tourism, Educational / Study tour, Home stay / Cultural exchange, Organic agri / farm tourism, Expedition / Adventurous tourism.

Welcome to Eco / Nature tourists, Village/Rural tourists, Agri Farm tourists, Homestay / Holiday tourists, Adventure/ Expedition tourists, Spiritual/ Yoga tourists, Film shooting / Photography tourists, Knowledge and /Study tourists, Journalism / Reporters tourists, Volunteers / Social helper tourists, and others.

Villagers residing in Kanda of Bageshwar District (Uttaranchal, India) are poor, with over 50% below the poverty line. But, their skills in painting designs, patterns and flower decoration are highly appreciable. Rural Organisation for Social Elevation (R.O.S.E.) or Koormanchal Seva Samsthan (K.S.S.) was started in 1981, with the aim of improving the lifestyle, health, education and financial conditions of local villagers. Also, the organization motivates people to enhance their quality of life along with sustaining the ecological balance and cultural integrity. The initiation of this non-governmental and non-profit organization was done by a small group belonging to the Kanda community.

The aim is achieved by conducting various programme, wherein volunteer tourists are brought to Kanda for experiencing the daily chores, lifestyles and general condition of the locality. Herein, the volunteers stay with the host of programme, The Verma Family, and help out the community with finances (administration fee, rent and optional donation) along with some manual assistance in the form of rural development projects.

As evident, a crucial part of this programme is the staying of volunteer tourists, and for this, Jeevan Paying Guest was set up. The host Mr. Jeevan Lal Verma aids the volunteers completely and provides them with any kind of information and assistance they require.

Kanda, Bageshwar (Uttaranchal, India)

Located in Bageshwar district of Uttaranchal's Kumaoni hill range, Kanda is a is bowl-shaped valley. It integrates about 30 villages and provides shelter to more than 20,000 people. The villagers are engaged in various activities viz. agricultural farming, handicraft, jewelry, forestry, horticulture, tea gardening, & lately, mining. Further, many villagers have enrolled into armed forces or have retired from it, surviving on the money-order economy. Your host, the Verma Family, is residing in a village of Sonargaon, which is 10 minutes from the Kanda market.

Some of the highlights of Kanda are listed below:

Terraced lands and snow capped peaks / hills
Pure air, healthy environment and mountain scenery
Visually appealing landscape, terraced farming & numerous wild flowers
Plenty of medicinal plants, spices and herbs that are cultivated by local farmers
Local Craft :: Carpentry, bamboo craft, wool carpet weaving, blacksmithing, masonry, dehydrated floral craft and Rangoli Alpana (folk painting)

People of Kanda

All the local villagers are poor, with more than 50% belonging to below poverty line and lacking the health & sanitation facilities and even suitable shelter.
There are many small land holdings, with these being divided among many generations.
For meat, milk, compost, and field plowing; cow, buffalo, goat, and ox rearing is extremely popular.
Villagers are religious and they depend solely on the available natural resources.
They are highly skilled in painting special designs and patterns on houses along with dried flower decoration called Alpana and Rangoli.

Get Acquainted With The Host – Mr. Jeevan Lal Verma

Born in the village of Sunargaon (Kanda, Bageshwar District of the Kumoan region in Uttarakhand, North India), Mr. Jeevan Lal Verma has studied at Inter College Kanda, ITI Training Almora and National Apprenticeship at Scooters India Limited, Lucknow. After finishing studies, he took up the social work inside the village. As a part of his hobby, he remained connect to the outside world by participating in various training projects, workshops, visits and conferences.

June 1988

This was the month and year, when Mr. Verma met a few foreign visitors in a workshop. Those visitors were looking for a host family. The same year, in August, he hosted 8 international volunteers from assorted nations. All of them participated in a 15 days home stay, cultural exchange along with social and rural development work camps. With this first and successful experience, he along with the support of his family and community welcomed all the tourists.

As Mr. Verma was still participating in various events all around, he exhibited the photographs of volunteers & village tourism in order to make people aware of opportunities present in Kanda. The family of Mr. Jeevan Lal Verma includes:

Wife :: Hema
Children :: 6
Eldest Girl : Praveen (married and lives about 45 minutes away). She has a son named Gautam.
Eldest Son :: Jeetendra
Second Daughter :: Diptee (also married)
Other Daughters :: Renu and Gunga
Youngest Son :: Sadju

Current Ongoing Opportunities

Building The Community Centre

This project is targeted to provide emergency shelter to families that are affected from flash floods and / or mud slides. The center is also expected to be a meeting place and cultural center, with it upper storey having a fair price shop.

Building A Fair Price Shop

This shop is intended to provide affordable, locally sourced and ecologically sound produce for the local families.

Building Lavatories

Upon research, it has been found that “twin tank composting toilet” is far more easier to construct and maintain as compared to other options. Also, it yields nutrient-rich compost, which can be used in agricultural fields. In 1980, we received a grant that allows us to built 40 of these tanks in the Kanda community. Till date, this project has been a success. One of the other traits of such lavatories is complete privacy to women.

Eco Developments Such As Tree Plantations

We are committed to the regeneration and improvement of environment, in all our projects. We are emphasizing on Tree Plantations mainly, because over the years, deforestation has caused erosion, low soil fertility and water shortages; affecting the lives of local villagers.

Escort Services

For our guests, we are providing complete guide for their journey to Kanda. We are providing escort services. Once you decide to pay a visit to us, our volunteer will meet you at the designated place. Afterwards, he / she will accompany you till our residence. For the escort services, extra charges are applicable depending on your residing place. A brief is cited below:

New Delhi to Kanda

We do not provide direct escort services from New Delhi. Since, the capital is well connected to rails, you can take a direct train to Haldwani, and we will escort from there. In extreme cases, we may provide the service directly from Delhi, but corresponding charges will apply.

Haldwani to Kanda

From Haldwani, the hill journey begins. Our volunteer will meet you at the Railway station or bus station as needed and will bring you to “Jeevan Paying Guest”.

Bageshwar to Kanda

Bageshwar is the base town and a district center, which is centrally located in all bus routes. Our volunteer will be present here and will accompany you to “Jeevan Paying Guest”.

Achievements

Honored by Honorable Tourism Minister Uttarakhand, Shri Prakash Pant on World Tourism Day 27th September 2007 at H.N.B. Garhwal University Srinagar by the recommendation of Prof S. C. Bagri Director Centre For Mountain Tourism and Hospitality Studies HNB Garhwal University Srinagar on his research on Rural Eco /Voluntary Tourism in Sunargoan, Kanda, Bageshwar, Uttarakhand.

Awards

First Choice Responsible Tourism Award 2005 for Best Volunteering programme sponsored by The Imaginative Traveler, from The World Travel Market (WTM), London 16th November 2005
Selected for best citizens of India 2006 by India International Friendship Society New Delhi
Selected for The Pride of Utaranchal 2001 by Utsah New Delhi.