Kutch

Subject:Arts and culture/ Environment

Context:

Ministry of Tourism has organized  DekhoApnaDesh webinar titled ‘The Tenacity of Survival -Inspirational story of Kutch’

Concept:

• Kutch is a land of salt desert, grasslands and mangroves.
• Interestingly, the mangroves here are known for an amazing phenomenon of being world’s only Inland Mangrove.
• The Rann of Kutch alone produces three-fourth of total salt supply of India.
• The place is also the home to the Kharai breed of camel which has the special ability to survive on both dry land as well as in the saline water. They can even swim in sea water and feed on saline water and plants. They are well-adapted to the extreme climate of the desert and high salinity of water.
• The key highlights of the presentation were virtual visit to the community of Ajrakh traditional block printers. Ajrakh is one of the oldest types of block printing on textiles still practiced in parts of Gujarat and Rajasthan in India.
• The other salient attractions of Kutch showcased in the webinar included:
  • Dholavira- UNESCO World Heritage Site and second largest Harappan site located in India. It is indeed a marvellous example of town-planning and architecture.
  • Fossil Park
  • Rann of Kutch-Salt Desert of Arabian Sea
  • Surhando- Unique peacock-shaped instrument plays a melodious music
  • Thaali Dance- A balancing dance performed to commensurate the celebrations of marriage and child birth
  • Tooofaan- Famous wild dance of the ocean also known as “SamundarkiMasti”