Dehradun, June 5 -- At Pipalkoti, the gateway to the Alaknanda Valley, when migration, unemployment, and limited resources were being discussed, one person was searching for possibilities in local resources. He believed that, if the forests, fields, herbs, ringal bamboo, and traditional knowledge of the mountains were given the right direction, the picture of the villages could be changed. This very thinking today places Jagdamba Prasad Maithani among the foremost development leaders of the Alaknanda Valley.

On World Environment Day, Jagdamba Maithani will be honoured with the Gaura Devi Environment Award at a ceremony organised in Urgam Valley. This honour is not only for an individual but for the thinking that made local resources the ...