Villages of Harsil :
1)Bagori
In Harsil , we got a chance to visit some villages which includes Bagori: A small village with Wooden Houses… Yes ! The houses were made of woods and every corner of the village was clean without any litter or waste. This village was also awarded Swachh Bharat for its cleanliness in 2019. When we entered the village we were just amazed at the lifestyle of the people here who were very sweet and polite to us.
The Bhotiya Community of Bagori
After interacting with a few people,we came to know that the people of this village are a part of the Bhotiya Community which originates from Nelong Valley. During the Indo Chinese War in the 1960s, they shifted to this village.
Since then they reside here and practice Apple Farming, Weaving and other such activities. The Apple Orchards of Harsil, especially Bagori, are very famous and they are exported worldwide. We also got a chance to enjoy the fresh fruit directly from the Orchard.
One of the best thing you will find in this village is that everyone is engaged in some or the other work and are not dependent for their source of income. Some practice farming of Pahadi Rajma, Apples and some other crops and others practice Sheep Rearing, from which they make woolen clothes and many bags and other products.
Another fact about this village is that the Youth and the young generation were not present in the village. This was very shocking for us because we saw everyone was old and there were no people like us or of our age. Out of curiosity I and few of our teammates asked the ladies over there about this. They told us that all their children were either studying or working in Uttarkashi, Dehradun, Roorkee and other plain areas. These people also move to plains during winter season, because of heavy snowfall and extreme climate during the month of October - December. Exploring this village developed our perspective and there were many unknown interesting facts which we learned during our visit to the Bagori Village
2)Mukhwa Village:
Located between the mountains and green forest, the Mukhwa Village of Harsil is known for its famous temple. After trekking for few minutes we reached the temple. It is believed that during the winter season when the Gangotri is snow covered, the idol of Maa Ganga is brought here and the pilgrims pray here during those six months. The temple is beautiful and peaceful.
This Village is also very beautiful surrounded by lush green trees , rivers and mountains. People of this village grow apples and rajma , which they sell further.
