The beauty of this biking trip was that we started biking from Chandigarh, rode through dry rivulet beds, running choes of Punjab villages of Naya Gaon, Karoran, Nadha, Tandi and Tanda to finish biking in the first village of Haryana called Prempura.
With a chill in the air, the bright sunday morning of greeted CATS at Karuna Sadan...Our 'Gali Ke Munde' busy on the 'Geri Route' ;-)
All jokes aside, CAT Aman takes the credit of being the youngest in this biking trip at 7yrs with a colourful bicycle that was also the tiniest in the group!! Such is the determination of our young CATS that CAT Aman had recently learnt to bike as he did not wish to sit in the car as he had to 3 months ago during the Jayanti Devi Biking Trip.
CAT Ansh is only 4 months older than him and CAT Rattan is 8yrs old... The credit for the eldest member is to be shared between CAT Rajpal and/or CAT Maharaj... CAT Tony chose to play 'Guard' and stay right at the back to ensure no one got lost along the way... CAT Rajpal as usual our First Aid Officier and CAT Rachna our Doc-on-duty!
29 CATS set pedals to work in a very scenic part of our City Beautiful...It was getting superbly quiter after we crossed Naya Gaon village.. Air was fresh and birds had started making their presence felt...
But the tarmac road disappeared soon!!CAT Sandeep watching over CAT Surbhi, who's trying to cross the first choe... Meow
Yes.. indeed is a common sight and that too within 5kms from the boundary of Chandigarh!!Camel is King here :)
Not just the missing roads or the dry choes, CATS had to pedal their way through the watery rivulets too... A few of us brave hearts refused to get down the bicycles whilst the rest of us got down for safety reasons... One elderly bystander took pity on CAT Aman and helped him, who was struggling to cross the slushy path with his tiny bicycle in tow...
WE made an impromptu stop an Tandi village to pay respects at the local deity's temple set atop a small hillock... At first half the CATS refused to climb up saying this stoppage was not mentioned in the factsheet!! However.. everyone started trudging along to reach the top...
But not till CATS had fed their bellies with some home made cake baked by our darling CAT Gopika (err.. Dopita!!) the previous night...
And discussed certain species of birds courtsey our Bird Watcher CAT Rima, who held everyone in awe with her immense knowledge... It's not every day that you get to see a 'quite' Ansh you know ;-)
Though everyone had reached the top sooner than imagined.. The views were splendid and is was fascinating to this this wilderness spread ahead of you which is only miles away from the bustling and busting Chandigarh!
Though everyone had reached the top sooner than imagined.. The views were splendid and is was fascinating to this this wilderness spread ahead of you which is only miles away from the bustling and busting Chandigarh!Biking after years can come as a real shoker, as it did happen to many of us! CAT Gurinder asked CAT AP, 'So how's it going?' Resting on a log he quipped, 'Poonchh nikal gayi, Haathi reh gaya!!'
Another unusual site was to see a Sikh temple priest...
Incase you are wondering what these children are looking at so intently... then just look below!!
Little CAT Aman pushing his little bicycle through a tough terrain with great tenacity, despite being offered a ride in the car of CAT Paramjeet; our recovery vehicle!
Infact such was the grit and determination of this little boy that even his father, CAT AP did not have the courage to come off the bike, even when he felt tired!
Another unusual site was to see a Sikh temple priest...
Incase you are wondering what these children are looking at so intently... then just look below!!
Little CAT Aman pushing his little bicycle through a tough terrain with great tenacity, despite being offered a ride in the car of CAT Paramjeet; our recovery vehicle!Infact such was the grit and determination of this little boy that even his father, CAT AP did not have the courage to come off the bike, even when he felt tired!
Equal kudos must be given to our 12yrs old Shaurya who's tyre busted beyond repair within a few kms into the trip. Instead of hopping into the car, she requested our bicycle repair man to lend her his bike instead so that she could continue biking through!
Soon after 10am we reached Prempura village whereby we were greeted by pretty village damsels fetching water from the village well.. yes the well and not tap water!
Our first stop in the village was the Village School, where we all quickly took position on the jungle gyms, slides, classroom chairs, benches... basically everything meant for children!!
Ab yeh harkatein humari hongi to sara gaon dekhne to zaroor aayega!!!
Billiyon ko dekhne ke liye gaayein bhi utaavali ho uthi !!!
Despite feeling like Show Pieces, CATS actually had a great time in the 'classroom'...
The Sarpanch of Prempura Mr Satnam Singh with the active assistance of Village Teacher Mr Jetinder Singh had made simple yet beautiful arrangement for CATS at the village.
Whilst waiting for piping hot masala chai, CATS are making themselves comfortable in the primary school building of Prempura and promptly switched into the ‘Class Room’ mode.
...and there was plenty to learn about basic moral values...
a beautiful child in the arms of a pretty village belle..
Seeing these two girls made the reality hit even harder on CATS that this village with a total population of app. 500 people had 150 school going children. Till a year ago, the school was only functional till the primary level and the school was only recently upgraded to the secondary level. The school building consisted of a hall divided into two classrooms while the open verandah became the third classroom. This small area is supposed to cater to 150 students every working day! Another harsh truth behind such beautiful female faces was that no girl ever from the village had studied uptil class 8... What progress are we talking about CATS???
Soon after 10am we reached Prempura village whereby we were greeted by pretty village damsels fetching water from the village well.. yes the well and not tap water!
Our first stop in the village was the Village School, where we all quickly took position on the jungle gyms, slides, classroom chairs, benches... basically everything meant for children!!
Ab yeh harkatein humari hongi to sara gaon dekhne to zaroor aayega!!!
Billiyon ko dekhne ke liye gaayein bhi utaavali ho uthi !!!
Despite feeling like Show Pieces, CATS actually had a great time in the 'classroom'...The Sarpanch of Prempura Mr Satnam Singh with the active assistance of Village Teacher Mr Jetinder Singh had made simple yet beautiful arrangement for CATS at the village.
Whilst waiting for piping hot masala chai, CATS are making themselves comfortable in the primary school building of Prempura and promptly switched into the ‘Class Room’ mode.
...and there was plenty to learn about basic moral values...
a beautiful child in the arms of a pretty village belle..Seeing these two girls made the reality hit even harder on CATS that this village with a total population of app. 500 people had 150 school going children. Till a year ago, the school was only functional till the primary level and the school was only recently upgraded to the secondary level. The school building consisted of a hall divided into two classrooms while the open verandah became the third classroom. This small area is supposed to cater to 150 students every working day! Another harsh truth behind such beautiful female faces was that no girl ever from the village had studied uptil class 8... What progress are we talking about CATS???
We really never count our lucky stars... do we??!!!
Sarpanch Satnam Singh gave us a guided tour of the village, which was amazingly clean devoid of any smells or undue litter...
Little CATS mesmerised by the sight of a frail bitch feeding its’ young pups... whilst our naughty CAT Ansh wanted to see how the bitch reacts if prodded with a stick (which he assumed was a sugarcane!!)... CAT Amanat wanted to know if she could give food to the bitch as her bones were sticking out...
The sights and scenes our young CATS witnessed during the guided tour of this old village offered a new insight of life, especially for the ones who have been brought up on the popcorn culture of malls and senitised homes.
A woman re-carpeting her kitchen floor with a mixture of water, mud and cow dung...
A 'havan' in progress at the 'khera' of the village...
For the uninitiated, a tree is planted when the village originally begins no matter how many years ago it was... This place is called khera... This is usually the place where the community gathers for fun frolick and to discuss important matters.
CAT Rachna got the children together and set up this transit 'hand-wash' facility before langar :)
CAT Sandeep, CAT Surbhi, CAT Maharaj, CAT Pradeep and CAT Tony quickly joined me and formed a langar thali distribution queue... Mouth watering saag and makki di roti was very affectionately cooked by various villagers..
Village Sarpanch and Teacher themselves served the food for us... CATS were humbled indeed by their generosity... They could not do enough for us and we could not thank them enough...
We said our goodbyes after promising the village Sarpanch and the Teacher that we would do our level best to help them upgrade the facilities at the school... This is the least we could do..
Ek Chhota Sa wada... Ek Chhoti Si Umeed...
We need to raise funds for constructing a new hall for the school children... Would YOU like to contribute towards the building fund CATS? Eveery drop helps fill the bucket...
The camel ride was the ultimate icing on the cake of this really meaningful heritage trip....
and if you thought it was just wide smiles all the way... then look at the frightened faces of CAT Amanat, CAT Rhytm and CAT Gopika for confirmation ;-)
aur yeh humari darpoke billiyan nahin hain... sab ka yehi haal tha!!
Whilst CAT Maharaj had to ride home with one hand steering his daughter CAT Shaurya's bike, do you think CAT Tony should be challaned for being on the mobile whilst riding a bike??!!!
The finishing line up of yet another successful and satisfying day.... Hats off to our gutsy little ones - CAT Aman, CAT Ansh, CAT Rattan, CAT Rhythm, CAT Shaurya and CAT Amanat, who all completed this 22kms return trip on their bicycles... Well, I guess we could also commend our older CATS who are still nursing bruises after riding the bikes ;-)
Sarpanch Satnam Singh gave us a guided tour of the village, which was amazingly clean devoid of any smells or undue litter...
Little CATS mesmerised by the sight of a frail bitch feeding its’ young pups... whilst our naughty CAT Ansh wanted to see how the bitch reacts if prodded with a stick (which he assumed was a sugarcane!!)... CAT Amanat wanted to know if she could give food to the bitch as her bones were sticking out...The sights and scenes our young CATS witnessed during the guided tour of this old village offered a new insight of life, especially for the ones who have been brought up on the popcorn culture of malls and senitised homes.
A woman re-carpeting her kitchen floor with a mixture of water, mud and cow dung...
A 'havan' in progress at the 'khera' of the village...For the uninitiated, a tree is planted when the village originally begins no matter how many years ago it was... This place is called khera... This is usually the place where the community gathers for fun frolick and to discuss important matters.
CAT Rachna got the children together and set up this transit 'hand-wash' facility before langar :)
CAT Sandeep, CAT Surbhi, CAT Maharaj, CAT Pradeep and CAT Tony quickly joined me and formed a langar thali distribution queue... Mouth watering saag and makki di roti was very affectionately cooked by various villagers..
Village Sarpanch and Teacher themselves served the food for us... CATS were humbled indeed by their generosity... They could not do enough for us and we could not thank them enough...
We said our goodbyes after promising the village Sarpanch and the Teacher that we would do our level best to help them upgrade the facilities at the school... This is the least we could do..Ek Chhota Sa wada... Ek Chhoti Si Umeed...
We need to raise funds for constructing a new hall for the school children... Would YOU like to contribute towards the building fund CATS? Eveery drop helps fill the bucket...
The camel ride was the ultimate icing on the cake of this really meaningful heritage trip....
and if you thought it was just wide smiles all the way... then look at the frightened faces of CAT Amanat, CAT Rhytm and CAT Gopika for confirmation ;-)aur yeh humari darpoke billiyan nahin hain... sab ka yehi haal tha!!
Whilst CAT Maharaj had to ride home with one hand steering his daughter CAT Shaurya's bike, do you think CAT Tony should be challaned for being on the mobile whilst riding a bike??!!!Chal chaliye Noodal Baar.... Naal billiyaan do-chaar!!
Just a thought ;-)
The finishing line up of yet another successful and satisfying day.... Hats off to our gutsy little ones - CAT Aman, CAT Ansh, CAT Rattan, CAT Rhythm, CAT Shaurya and CAT Amanat, who all completed this 22kms return trip on their bicycles... Well, I guess we could also commend our older CATS who are still nursing bruises after riding the bikes ;-)We could not possibly finish off our day without thanking Mr Pramod Sharma from Yuvsatta, without whom CATS would probably never have ventured towards Tanda/Prempura. Pramod not only went with me to conduct a reccee, but he also provided bicycles on rent for us along with parking facility for CATS. THANK YOU Pramod.
See you on the dirt track soon CATS :)
- CAT Supreet
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