Chirag works in the Kumaun region of Uttarakhand in India, which is situated at the tri-junction of Nepal, Tibet and India. The Kumaun region lies between 200 and 7,400 meters above sea level, but our work is concentrated in the zone ranged from 1000 and 3000 meters. The central Himalayan region provides a fascinating field for pioneering research in several areas, particularly, geology, anthropology, sociology and natural history. The floral, faunal and agricultural diversity of Kumaun, which includes indigenous, hardy and nutritious varieties of cereals, pulses and fruit trees, are natural resources yet to be fully documented and utilised. This is underlain by Kumaun’s cultural resources—its customs, languages, music and of course, its people.  Consequently this makes Chirag’s work in the region both challenging and focused.

In addition to Chirag’s main office located at Simayal village in Ramgarh Block of Nainital district, we have 9 area teams, which allow us to have a direct presence in more than 200 villages. Our area offices are dispersed in four blocks of Nainital district; two in Almora, one in Bageshwar and one in Pithoragarh district. Apart from these area offices, we also run a school, two experimental farms and a hospital, all situated in the surrounding area.