Wednesday, October 30, 2013

Midweek Portrait Gallery

In India dried  cow dung is often used as cooking fuel or as construction material for huts.Collecting , forming it into pies or cakes ,transporting it etc is mostly done by women in the rural parts of the country.








Nicely decorated cow dung tile. The life span to these huts is not very long due to the heavy monsoon in some regions.

Had a look at Wikipedia at found some interesting facts: 
1. Massai villages in Africa used to burn cow dung inside their huts as Mosquito repellent.
2. In the past in mountain regions of Europe it has been used as fuel.
3. In a cold climate in can be used as thermal insulator.
4. It produces biogas to generate electricity.

Maybe we should look at our cows not just as a source of milk, cheese and meat?

8 comments:

  1. That first photo is outstanding, and information & all - very interesting!

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  2. locally there's a cow patty competition, like a discus throw, but with cow dung. it's big for the local government to do the first toss at the fair.

    making the patties useful for more than sport is a good idea.

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  3. In Tibet it is also used for fuel. I doubt it gives off the same fragrance as burning wood though!

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  4. Your India photos always strike such an emotional chord with me. That first shot of the woman is so striking. The composition is breath taking.

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  5. Amazing! These are really BIG!

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  6. What an interesting and informative post Chai and your photos... are awesome! The first one is spectacular. Love the comp and the mood you captured, it is really fantastic :) have a great day!

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  7. Superbe documentation of a very interesting culture. I wonder if the dung used for cooking fuel adds flavor to the food.

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