Badrinath valley Bamboo handicrafts case study

(Ringal Craft ( Himalayan Dwarf Bamboo Craft), Pandukeshwar (Badrinath Valley) :

Pandukeshwar Valley is home to Ringal (Dwarf Bamboo). It has a sizable habitation of Ringal species prevalent in its abounding habitat. The project envisaged engaging the community to make creative artifact from this abandoned resource available to them within the community managed forest area. Ringal inhabits the higher Himalayan hamlets of Uttarakhand mountains i.e. within the cold temperate and Sub-Alpine snowfall regions.

The community has been using Ringal to fullfil for the very basic necessities such as making fodder baskets or using as support to rajma/pulses crop in kharif season. It was envisaged that the skills of local artisans can be enhanced under the project with the purpose to make their skills marketable and create incomes appreciably.

Training was been imparted to women artisans to learn in making marketable artifacts. The training was been received with much enthusiasm. The beneficiaries felt that these new product line shall attract the tourist and pilgrims, thus remunerating and enhancing living standards of affected families. The program enabled skill development of 200 women beneficiaries. Apart, the program also supported master craftsmen as trainers and advocated recognition of their contribution in Ringal Bamboo weaving traditions to the government. Mr. Abali Lal, a sincere master craftsmen (village Tangadi, joshimat) was awarded Shilpa Ratna Puruskar/award from Uttarakhand government, for his good service in Ringal crafts, as master trainer to promote Ringal endeavour in the state.

Mrs. Bindu devi & Mrs Vijaya devi from Pandukeshwar collectively say : “Ringal (Dwarf Himalayan Bamboo) handicrafts, a bamboo produce of our village forest, has provided to us a new outlook towards creativity, livelihood opportunity and environment protection for self and community. The various enterprise engagement under this are supporting us as supplementary income through producing artifacts during the Yatra season”

Smt.Bindu Devi and Smt. Vijaya Devi are amongst the many enthusiastic and progressive beneficiaries under Bamboo Handicrafts program. They have wholeheartedly participated and made creative artifacts. They feel the endeavor has provided supplementary incomes and much needed economic support for meeting sustenance need of the family. They share they never realized that Bamboo Handicrafts can be so valuable and meaningful as they saw it wasted by the roadside, abundantly prevalent. They are collectively with other bamboo handicraft beneficiaries taking care to conserve bamboo species in the wild and further towards better management of forest resources.