KBG-28 Identify the Structure

Hi Folks,
KBG- Kaun Banega Ghumakkad is back!

After a series of KBGs on plants and flowers, Ghumakkad is back with travel questions.
Identify the structure and the place where it is located.

Those who couldn't get it, here are two clues.

Easy, wasn't it?

Shoot your response as a comment here, or email <hbindia@gmail.com>, or Instagram or WA. Your choice.

First three correct answers to both parts of the question get featured in the blog.

All the best

   Harsh-the-Ghumakkad/ 6th March 2020

#travelisfun #worldheritage #monuments #preservation #funwithtravel #ghumakkadhb #ghumakkadharsh

Celosia Cockscomb KBG-27

Magenta flowers.
Velvety.
Wavy.
Hardy.
Blooms last for many days.
Which flower is that?
KBG-27 Kaun Banega Ghumakkad had posed this question last week.

Answer: Celosia Cockscomb or Celosia Cristata or Murgkesh  मुर्गकेश in Hindi. It is called Seethamma Jada in Telugu.
Why this name? Because the flower is shaped like the comb on a cock's head!

This annual plant has a velvety, ruffled form that is 

often compared to a cockscomb, or even a brain. See 

the picture above.

In fact, it's commonly known as cockscomb or woolflower. Celosia seems like an exotic flower, but it's not difficult to grow in the home garden. It makes a striking accent to other flowers in the garden. In fact the saplings in our garden were brought by our domestic help from her neighbourhood growing wild.

Few more pictures of the flower from our garden in Secunderabad, India.

See the pollinator at work on a cockscomb flower. 

Being a common flower across the world, the contest drew more than 350 participants with more than 50 correct answers. First three correct answers came within 10 minutes of posting the contest on-line. Advance intimation of the Contest gave equal chances to participants across time zones.

Congratulations to the winners of KBG-27 listed below:

1. Poornima Tangirala, IT Professional Hyderabad
2. Rohini Tiwari, PhD, Former Professor, Nutrition and Wellness Consultant, Coimbatore Tamil Nadu
3. Col Jaishankar, Indian Army. Blogger, traveller and environmentalist.

We are grateful to all the participants for their continued support. Those who missed the awards by a few minutes, be faster in responding next time.

Special thanks go to Dr Chitra Shanker for research guidance and Ramya Sriram for the logo design.

Thanks for browsing. Stay connected.

     -  Harsh-the-Ghumakkad/ 6th Nov 2019

#kbg #kaunbanegaghumakkad #onlinecontest #environment #nature #awareness #fun #quickresponse #shootfast #firstthree #kbgwinner #ghumakkadhb #ghumakkadharsh #celosiacockscomb #cockscomb #knowyourenvironment #wanderers #photowalks #learningfromnature #plants #powerofobservation #learningfromplants #funwatchingflowers

White Buttercup Winner KBG-25

Wild flower.
Grows all over.
In open fields.
World over not just India.
Picture below.

Yes, that is White Buttercup or Turnera Subulata- the correct answer to KBG-25.
It blooms for over two hours in the forenoon and folds up thereafter. It multiplies fast because it is poisonous for cattle and humans. But once dry, the poison is not active. As per Wikipedia the dried flowers have medicinal value.

The Buttercup is a weed that grows to just few inches tall. But its leaves are distinctive. We gave a clue through a picture of its leaves. It is pollinated by a bee.

25th edition of KBG- Kaun Banega Ghumakkad saw keen participation. The winners are:

1. Narender Soni, Gurgaon, Haryana
2. Parag Sharma, Nagpur, Maharashtra
3. Deepak Jena, Behrampur, Odisha

Congratulations to all three winners.

Special thanks are due to Dr Chitra Shanker for research guidance.

KBG will take a break as readers have requested for Ghumakkad's other travel and teaching/learning stories. But stay connected.

Thanks for making KBG a success! 25 contests in nine months- all thanks to you!

    -  Harsh-the-Ghumakkad with Neeta Bhargava/ 8th September 2019

We are grateful to Ramya Sriram of UK for KBG logo design.

#kbg #kaunbanegaghumakkad #contest25 #onlinecontest #turnerasubulata #whitebuttercup #travellers #ghumakkadhb #ghumakkadharsh #knowyourenvironment #wanderers #photowalks #learningfromnature #plants #environment #nature #wildflowers

Walk the Wild KBG-25

Do you love walking in the wild?
Off the beaten track?
Explore the woods or open fields which have wild flowers?
Then KBG-25 the 25th edition of Kaun Banega Ghumakkad, should be a cakewalk for you!

Which wild flower is this?

Clues not just one but three clues follow through pictures below.

First three correct answers get featured in the next story. Use any channel to respond i.e. leave a comment in the blog, email, WhatsApp, FB or Instagram. We have time-sync'd all!

Special thanks to Dr Chitra Shanker for research guidance.

Those who missed KBG-24, may browse it here.

Happy hunting!

    -  Harsh-the-Ghumakkad with Neeta Bhargava/ 2nd September 2019

We are grateful to Ramya Sriram of UK for KBG logo design.

#kbg #kaunbanegaghumakkad #contest25 #onlinecontest #travellers #ghumakkadhb #ghumakkadharsh #knowyourenvironment #wanderers #photowalks #learningfromnature #plants #environment #nature #wildflowers

Which Plant KBG-24

Which plant is this?

Pretty common.
Not only in India but across the continents.
You would have seen it in the neighbourhood.
It is perennial and evergreen.

Any more clue required?
See the caption in the picture below.

Now, shoot your answer on any channel WA, FB, Insta or email <hbindia@gmail.com> and win KBG-24, the 24th edition of Kaun Banega Ghumakkad.
First three correct answers get featured in the next story.

Special thanks to Dr Chitra Shanker for research guidance.

Thanks for browsing.

    - Harsh-the-Ghumakkad with Neeta Bhargava/ 17th Aug 2019

We are grateful to Ramya Sriram of UK for KBG logo design.

#kbg #kaunbanegaghumakkad #contest24 #travellers #ghumakkadhb #ghumakkadharsh #knowyourenvironment #wanderers #onlinecontest #photowalks #learningfromnature #plants #environment #nature

Bhongir Fort KBG-23

A thousand year old fort.
Built atop a thousand foot high monolith.
Steep slopes. Almost invincible.
Not very far from Hyderabad.

Yes, we are talking about Bhongir Fort shown in KBG-23 the 23rd edition of Kaun Banega Ghumakkad. Bhongir Fort is about 60 kms from Hyderabad on NH-163 Hyd-Warrangal Highway. But surprisingly, most Hyderabadis could not spot the fort correctly.

The responses to KBG-23 ranged from the Forts at Golconda to Daulatabd. We have only two correct answers from the following readers:

1. Bharath Kommuri, MBA working at State Street HCL at Vijayawada
2. Parag Sharma, Former Air Commodore IAF, now settled in Nagpur. He has flown over Bhongir Fort number of times.

Our congratulations to both.

History

According to Wikipedia, the Fort was built in the 10th century on an isolated monolithic rock by the Western Chalukya ruler Tribhuvanamalla Vikramaditya VI and was thus named after him as Tribhuvanagiri. This name gradually became Bhuvanagiri and subsequently Bhongir. 

Rock Climbing School

The Tourism Department has started a Rock Climbing School at Bhongir. Its objective is to promote adventure tourism at the Bhongir Fort and to provide professional rock climbing training to enthusiasts. Also 300 ft & 600 ft rappelling is available for walk in tourists. The rock climbing school has been co-founded by Mr B Shekhar Babu, who has climbed Mt Everest solo. 

Another attraction close by is the famous Yadadrigutta temple. You can visit the Fort as well as the Temple in a day's outing from Hyderabad.

We thank all the participants. Stay connected. More KBGs are in the pipeline.

    -  Harsh-the-Ghumakkad with Neeta Bhargava/ 8th August 2019


We are grateful to Ramya Sriram of UK for KBG logo design.

#kbg #kaunbanegaghumakkad #contest23 #travellers #ghumakkadhb #ghumakkadharsh #knowyourheritage #history #monuments #wanderers #onlinecontest #photowalks #travelisfun #bhongirfort #bhuvanagiri #yadadri #telanganatourism 

Rocks with Human Shapes KBG-22

The 'Mountain Lady' shown in KBG-22 could not be identified by any reader correctly. But many readers sent pictures of similar hill features elsewhere in the world. That triggered further research. It made KBG-22 more interesting.

KBG-22 Answer
Let us first give you the answer to KBG-22. The picture of the mountain lady was taken on NH-44 approx 350 kms south of Hyderabad near Gooty in Andhra Pradesh. The hill feature has such a distinct contour that you can't miss it. Next time you are driving south on Hyderabad-Bangalore stretch of NH-44, do pull over and observe the 'mountain lady'. As we said it is all about the power of observation. Hope Ken Rockwell is listening!

Other Human Shaped Rocks
Inputs from our readers led us to further research. Here is a short list of other rock faces which resemble human or other shapes. Last column mentions the contributors. We are thankful to each one of them for their inputs.

S No.	Name of the Hill	Location	Credits
1.	Mountain Lady	Near Gooty, AP India	Ghumakkad
2.	Sleeping Beauty	Near Coal Mines, Telangana India	Vinay Prasad
3.	Ganesh Rock face from the front and Hanuman from the side	Kashipatnam, Vizag-Araku Road, AP India	NK Potti
4.	Tirumala Hill has face of Tirupati Balaji	Tirumala, AP India	NK Potti
5.	Nandi face	Tiruvannamalai Mountain, TN India	NK Potti
6.	Sleeping Beauty	Harsh Hills, Sikar Rajasthan India	Rashmi Bhargava
7.	Sleeping Lady	Hills near Quetta, Pakistan	Anil Sethi
8.	Sleeping Beauty	Near Joshimath, Uttarakhand India	BC Jayaprakash
9.	Ganesha Face	Pillar Rocks, Kodaikanal India	NK Potti
10.	Toad Rock resembles a giant Toad about to leap	Mt Abu Rajasthan India	Ghumakkad
11.	Duke’s Nose	Lonavala Maharashtra India	Ghumakkad
12.	The Sleeping Giant (11.2 kms long)	Nanabijou, Thunder Bay Ontario Canada	Prof G Worthey, Washington State University

Readers may refer Wikipedia which gives a list of rock formations that resemble human forms. They may also refer a book called "Natural Likeness: Faces and Figures in Nature" by John Mitchell for more information.

Another interesting site worth browsing is maintained by Prof G Worthey of  Washington State University USA. Thanks Prof Worthey for your comprehensive research.

We enjoyed KBG-22 as it added much to our knowledge. Thanks are due to all the contributors mentioned above.

Thanks for staying connected. KBG-23 will come soon straight on your smartphone!

      - Harsh-the-Ghumakkad with Neeta Bhargava/ 26th July 2019

#KBG #kaunbanegaghumakkad #contestonline #mountains #shapes #hills #powerofobservation #notjustonehill #Natgeoindia #lonelyplanetIndia #wandertrails #photowalk #ghumakkadhb #ghumakkadharsh #kenrockwell #NH-44 #gooty #mountainlady #sleepingbeauty

Mountain Lady KBG-22

"Photography is the power of observation, not application of technology", says Ken Rockwell the outspoken photography blogger. This edition of Kaun Banega Ghumakkad i.e. KBG-22 is centered around power of observation.

We all observe the world around us. We observe the trees, plants, flowers, birds, sky, clouds, people, buildings and so on. Newton observed the falling apple and rest is history. But we commoners are not Newtons. Thank God we are not! Else, poor students of Physics would have been bombarded with millions of theories by now!

We observe objects while sitting or walking in a park, hiking, driving or travelling in a train. Few weeks ago, Ghumakkad had also observed a distant hill feature while driving on a Highway. The hill had a distinct silhouette. With an undulating highway, the hill would vanish from the view and reappear after a while. So, we decided to pull over and take a picture. And what we saw was a 'Mountain Lady'! See the picture below shot by Neeta on her cellphone.

Do you agree with our observation? If yes, do let us know. 

Have you seen similar looking Mountain Lady elsewhere? Do you have a picture? Share it with location details, we will feature it in the next story. This way we will all learn.

Identify the location of the Mountain Lady featured above. Be quick- you may win KBG-22! 
Do you need a clue?

Clue: The Mountain Lady featured above can be seen on NH-44. In India, NH-44 stretches from Kashmir to Kanyakumari. Parts of the highway go through hilly tracts shown in the picture. That's a big hint!

Happy hunting!

      -  Harsh-the-Ghumakkad with Neeta Bhargava/ 14th July 2019

#KBG #kaunbanegaghumakkad #contestonline #mountains #shapes #hills #powerofobservation #notjustonehill #Natgeoindia #lonelyplanetIndia #wandertrails #photowalk #ghumakkadhb #ghumakkadharsh #kenrockwell

Statue of Equality KBG-21

Indian culture is very rich.
We have had saints and scholars for thousands of years. One such saint has been remembered and honoured recently. 

Located in the southern part of Hyderabad off NH-44, you can't miss the 216 foot tall statue. Made of five metals- Panchloha पाँचलोहा  in Hindi- namely gold, silver, copper, brass and titanium, the monument has been constructed on 34 acres of land. The statue has been made in China. Entire project cost of Rs 1000 crores is being met out of donations.

KBG-21 had two questions.
Q1: Name the statue and its location. Google would have given the answer as was evident from scores of correct responses received. But Google couldn't help answer Q2😟
The picture in KBG-21 showed a monument dedicated to 11th Century Vaishnavaite Saint Bhagwad Ramanuja. The monument is to commemorate 1000th birth anniversary of Shri Ramanuja. The monument has been named as the 'Statue of Equality' to commemorate the contributions made by Sri Ramanuja to bring equality in the society. He was certainly ahead of his times 1000 years ago!

Q2: Share a picture shot by the reader. This was to encourage the readers to visit the monument and to understand the contributions made by Shri Ramanuja to Indian Culture 1000 years ago. This question favoured the readers from Hyderabad. But as you can see, one of the winners came all the way from Rajasthan!

It was heartening to see more than 400 participants online. We had three clear winners. The first winner answered correctly within one minute! All of them have sent the above pictures of the monument taken by them or their family members. Congratulations to all three.

1. A Tejaswini, HR professional, travel enthusiast and portrait painter, Hyderabad
2. Rashmi Bhargava, Home maker and traveller, Sikar Rajasthan
3. SVS Chary, Former Rear Admiral Indian Navy, Traveller, Hyderabad

The monument will be in the news shortly when it gets formally inaugurated. The picture in KBG-21 had been taken from a distance through the bamboo plants.

The monument is becoming a tourist attraction in Hyderabad.

Thanks for your continued participation in KBG series. Stay connected for the next edition of KBG.

    Harsh-the-Ghumakkad/ 14th July 2019

#1000thbirthanniversary #216feettallstatue #Contest #heritage #Hyderabad #indianculture #KaunBanegaGhumakkad #KBG #Panchloha #ramanuja #Statueofequality 

Name the Statue KBG-21

Ever seen this tall and imposing statue?
Name the statue and its location.
That was the easy part of KBG-21, the 21st edition of Kaun Banega Ghumakkad. It hasn't finished yet.

Clue: Really not required. However, another picture below. Read the caption.

The second part of KBG-21 is to share a picture of the monument taken by you or a picture of the statue with you also in the frame. Photo-shopped pictures will not be considered. Mail the picture to hbindia@gmail.com. This is to encourage you to visit the monument which is unique in many ways. Those readers co-located with the statue, rev up your car or bike to go and take a picture. Fast!

Happy hunting!

     -  Harsh-the-Ghumakkad with Neeta Bhargava/ 11th July 2019/ hbindia@gmail.com

PS: We are grateful to Ramya Sriram for KBG logo design.

#KBG #kaunbanegaghumakkad #contest21 #statue #indianculture #yourphoto #namethestatue #photowithstatue #ghumakkadharsh #ghumakkadhb

Bal Mithai KBG-20

A tiny cube of Bal Mithai evoked tremendous nostalgia in people who had eaten it. It has a unique taste. Has long shelf life.
Those who hadn't yet tasted it, were curious to know about it.
Bal Mithai originated in Almora in Kumaon region of Uttarakhand, India.
Of course due to its popularity, it is now made and sold in many other cities/towns of UP and Uttarakhand.
This answers the first two questions of KBG-20, the 20th edition of Kaun Banega Ghumakkad:

1. What? It is Bal Mithai a sweet made of khoa खोआ evaporated and thickened milk and coated with white sugar balls
2. Where? Originated in Almora in Kumaon Hills of Uttarakhand.
3. Famous Manufacturer? We had mentioned 'like KC Das for Rasogullahs' as an example.

The final question of the contest could not be answered correctly except one reader. Most readers googled it and Wikipedia led them to the person who 'invented' the Bal Mithai. So, this time we have only one Winner who answered all the three questions correctly. Congratulations Col Jai Shankar! 

Correct answer to Q3 is 'Khim Singh Mohan Singh Rautela Sweets' who have an outlet on the Mall Road in Almora. This is based on first hand knowledge of residents of Almora over last 50 years or so!

This contest was once again easier than some of the previous contests. That is why within a few minutes, we received more than 100 responses. But all of them were limited to the first two questions. We thank them for their speed!

We now move on to the 21st edition of the Contest.

Stay connected and maintain your josh with Ghumakkad.

We are grateful to Ramya Sriram of www.thetap.in for designing the KBG logo.

Thanks for browsing

    -Harsh-the-Ghumakkad with Neeta Bhargava/ 30th June 2019

#KBG #kaunbanegaghumakkad #contest20 #foodies #travellers #eattolive #livetoeat #dessert #worldfamousdessert #ghumakkadhb #ghumakkadharsh #balmithai #almora #kumaon #uttarakhand #india