Snake Charming Facing The End Of Days


One of India's strongest cultural icons has always been the snake charmers with their flutes and basket containing their dancing snake, usually a cobra. It is a form of street performance that often includes snake handling, and other activities like juggling and sleight of hand. The keeping of snakes has been outlawed since 1972, but the law has rarely been enforced -- until recently.Cobra and Snake Charmer (Photo by Gregor Younger/Creative Commons via Wikimedia)Cobra and Snake Charmer (Photo by Gregor Younger/Creative Commons via Wikimedia)
Historically, the earliest evidence of snake charming was in ancient Egypt and their use by highly educated men who studied them, the gods they represented, and how to treat their bite. Current practices in India descend from the Hindu religion, which has held serpents to be sacred for hundreds, if not thousands, of years. For their skills the snakecharmer was considered a holy man and in touch with the gods. They were most likely healers. Snake charming is typically a profession handed down from father to son.
On August 30th and 31st the festival of Naag Panchami is scheduled to take place in India. The celebration is to honor the Hindu serpent god.  On Friday PETA, claiming that the animals are abused during the event, encouraged the use of fake snakes for the festival instead. 
They also claim that the snakes of the charmers are caught cruelly then stuffed into airless bags. The snakes often have their fangs broken or ripped out, or their mouths sewn shut so that they cannot bite and cannot eat. Some snakes are forced to drink milk.
The Bedia Federation of India, a non-profit agency which represents the snake charmer community quickly responded that they would never abuse the snakes since they worship them.  They added that the claims made by PETA are a publicity stunt aimed at the community of 800,000 snake charmers who have been struggling with poverty since the introduction of stricter wildlife laws in 2002. They also claimed that such laws have destroyed their livelihood and that there are no alternative employment opportunities. 
Indian Cobra (Photo by Kamalnv/Creative Commons via Wikimedia)Indian Cobra (Photo by Kamalnv/Creative Commons via Wikimedia)However, the rescue group Wildlife SOS has been trying to recruit traditional snake charmers to use their skills to capture snakes in populated areas, such as cities and suburbs, where they become a threat to people and move them back into the wild. 
Wildlife legislation and animal rights aside, the snake charmers are also facing an uphill battle as a new culture emerges in India. More people have access to television, video games, and the internet, thus reducing interest in street performers.
A few snake charmers can still be found in cities like New Delhi and areas that cater to tourists, risking arrest, getting the visitors to take their picture for a small fee.

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Monsoon Magic – A railway trek to Dudhsagar Falls


Monsoon Magic – A railway trek to Dudhsagar Falls

The monsoon is slowly building to a peak, and this is the time to explore the magnificent Dudhsagar Falls on the Goa-Karnataka border. Three railfanners took, quite literally, the railroad less travelled to explore this route. For those unfamiliar with railfanners, they are to trains and railways what birdwatchers are to birds. They are enchanted with the minutest details of the railway -- from locomotives, stations and carriages to rakes, signals, cabooses... you name it. Over three days, these intrepid enthusiasts planned a unique "trek" to Dudhsagar Falls in the Western Ghats. They met at Hubli, Karnataka and boarded the Haripriya Express to Londa, and then hailed an auto-rickshaw to Castle Rock. From there they trekked along the jungle-fringed track, lashed by monsoon downpours, to Caranzol. The weather being unkind, the station master advised them to head back to Castle Rock or Londa for the night. On the second day, they went to Dudhsagar and spent the day at the falls, indulging their passion for trainspotting. They returned home the next day. These images, shot by the railfanning trio of HARISH KUMARRAGHUPATHY JAYARAMAN and BEN HUR, capture some of the excitement of an unforgettable monsoon trek along the railway. 


































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A rainy day in Ranganathittu


Stealing their colours - A rainy day in Ranganathittu

A day when the weather gods had stripped the sky of blues and replaced them with greys brings out the poet in nature photographer THARANGINI BALA. When the gods themselves had chosen monochrome, who were we mere mortals to defy it, she asks. Enjoy her poignant portrayal of the water birds of Ranganathittu, near Mysore. 
















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Monsoon moods in Gangtok, Sikkim


Monsoon moods in Gangtok, Sikkim

After an aching delay, the monsoon has arrived in Sikkim, washing the landscape with rain and infusing the street scenes of Gangtok with colour and character.SRIVATSAN SANKARAN lets his lens wander among the streets of Gangtok, capturing the many sleepy moods of Sikkim and its townsfolk.













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