Sunday, December 13, 2009

Hikkim - World's Highest Post-office

With 1,55,618 post offices and over 5,66,000 employees, India has the largest postal network in the world. We can also boast of the world's highest post office. This branch post office is located in small town of Hikkim, in Lahaul Spiti district of Himachal Pradesh. It is located at height of 15500 feet and was opened of nov.5,1983. The pin code for this post office is 172114. There is a motorable road till Hikkim. Hikkim post office is 20 Km (12.5 miles) away from Kaza and serves about 600 people in the village. Around 50 people have a savings account in the Hikkim post office. The post office handles around 15-20 letters everyday.

Read more: World's Highest Helipad, World's Highest Battle-field, World's Highest Motorable Road

Tuesday, December 8, 2009

Alang - World's Largest Ship-breaking Yard


Alang is a census town in Bhavnagar district in the Indian state of Gujarat, India. It is the leading

centre of the worldwide ship breaking and recycling industry. The facility, located 50 km from Bhavnagar, employs nearly 20,000 people in more than 163 ship-breaking plots. It is known as the graveyard of ships, a place where ageing vessels are torn apart. The shipyards at Alang recycle approximately half of all ships salvaged around the world.

The first vessel – MV KOTA TENJONG was beached at Alang on 13th Feb. 1983. Since then, the yard has witnessed spectacular growth and has emerged as a leading ship Breaking Yard in the world. Tens of thousands of jobs are supported by this activity and millions of tons of steel are recovered.

Current ship-breaking is centered primarily in Pakistan, India, Bangladesh and China. One of the attractions to the ship owners of having their vessels dismantled here is that the ship breakers in this part of the world receive little of the regulatory oversight that takes place in Europe or the US.

Large supertankers, car ferries, container ships, and a dwindling number of ocean liners are beached during high tide, and as the tide recedes, about 150-200 workers can break down a 10,000-tonne ship in three months, salvaging nearly every part. About 80 percent of a ship’s steel is reusable steel, cheaper than primary steel and used mostly in construction.

The salvage yards at Alang have generated controversy about working conditions, workers' living conditions, and the impact on the environment. One major problem is that despite many serious work-related injuries, the nearest full service hospital is 50 kilometres away in Bhavnagar. Alang itself is served by a small Red Cross hospital that offers only limited services.

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...