Food truck provides a bright spot to Himachal’s rural women

On a warm summer day, a food truck pulls onto a spot by the winding road outside Ghandal village, 21km north of Shimla. A couple of cars carrying tourists going for shindigs in Himachal Pradesh stop for a quick snack of instant noodles – the popular, get-at-able comfort food of the Himalayan hills. Fun-loving families… Continue reading Food truck provides a bright spot to Himachal’s rural women

Bay leaf brings aroma to lives in Bengal

Lalita Rai’s job is to separate the leaves of the Indian bay leaf tree (Cinnamomum tamala) from the twigs. Her work at Gondoljot village in Darjeeling district of West Bengal will bring aroma to different delicacies prepared in distant places she may not have heard of.  Rai, 25, earns around Rs 1,200 per week after… Continue reading Bay leaf brings aroma to lives in Bengal

Dry taps drive people to toxic groundwater in Bihar

An ugly yellow stain coats water storage tanks, faucets, buckets and hand-cranked tubewells tapping underground water in Saharsa district of Bihar. Many people sport yellowish teeth. Even everyday utensils have an iridescent sheen, like multi-coloured reflections from oil on water.  The patina comes from the high concentration of iron in water drawn from underground aquifers… Continue reading Dry taps drive people to toxic groundwater in Bihar

Tribal woman ushers in organic farming in India’s last village

Madhupur, in Baksa district of Assam on the foothills of the Bhutanese Himalayas, is a village of contrasts. While bamboo and evergreen forests dot the landscape leading to the village, much of the rain-fed farms remain barren except during monsoons.  Multiple streams of water flow through the nearby mountains, yet there is an extreme scarcity… Continue reading Tribal woman ushers in organic farming in India’s last village

Student initiative promotes green period products

A urinary tract infection in 2016 led Priyanshi (last name withheld on request), a class 11 student of VidyaGyan school at Noida in Uttar Pradesh, to explore the menstrual cup as a hygienic, eco-friendly and cost-effective solution alternative to sanitary pads. She then started the ‘Bleed Green’ endeavour to reduce menstrual waste on the campus… Continue reading Student initiative promotes green period products

Kotwalia women break menstruation taboo

Chinchinagautha village in Dang district of Gujarat has 84 households. The village is home to two tribal communities – Kotwalia and Kokni. The Kokni community owns land and is comparatively well off. The Kotwalia community comprises around 50 landless families. The Kotwalia men and women make toplis (bamboo baskets) by collecting bamboo from the nearby… Continue reading Kotwalia women break menstruation taboo

Pad perfect – championing menstrual hygiene

Ankita Sahoo, known as the ‘padwoman of Odisha’, has been distributing free sanitary napkins and creating awareness about menstrual hygiene among women for over a decade. In another part of the country,  a group of girls from rural Kashmir have started manufacturing low cost sanitary napkins. Sahoo, who hails from Dadhisinga village in Gondia block… Continue reading Pad perfect – championing menstrual hygiene

Odisha village reunites with man missing for 60 years

It was a regular Thursday evening in Luhagudi village of Gajapati district in Odisha. Men were playing cards and women were busy with their household chores when the children running around aimlessly alerted them about some visitors, a fortnight ago. The visitors spoke no Odia. Yet, the story they narrated in Hindi and which the… Continue reading Odisha village reunites with man missing for 60 years

Less methane means more income for Gujarat herders

Livestock rearing is a major source of livelihood for the people of Limbala village in Gujarat. The village, which is home to nearly 300 families, lies in the heart of Saurashtra – one of the driest and harshest regions of the country. Long dry spells and erratic rainfall in the region make it a challenge… Continue reading Less methane means more income for Gujarat herders

Reaching for the stars from a wheelchair

In North Karnataka, a 17-year-old boy dreams of space from a wheelchair. As a first step towards achieving his dream, Keshav Vishnu Sutar has managed to score 93.76% in the SSLC board (10th standard) examination. It is obvious why he sees Stephen Hawking as an inspiration. Much like the renowned English physicist himself, Keshav’s body… Continue reading Reaching for the stars from a wheelchair

Machine eases work, empowers Andhra women labourers

Summer is upon the country and a swarm of farmhands harvests rows of maize and chops up ears, husks and stalks – labouring on as the sun beats down on the fields of a village in Srikakulam, a coastal district in northern Andhra Pradesh. On the way back home at the end of a hard… Continue reading Machine eases work, empowers Andhra women labourers

Shingve – the carrot village of Maharashtra

If you live in the western cities of India, it’s likely that you have carrots – darkish orange-coloured and pretty long with pointed tips – stored in your fridge waiting to be sliced for a fresh salad or turned into yummy carrot halwa. No, this is not about carrot recipes but about a village named… Continue reading Shingve – the carrot village of Maharashtra

Elderly Apatani village heads learn English alphabets

It’s better late than never for village chieftain Tillghk Morth, an Apatani tribesman from Ziro valley of Arunachal Pradesh, the horseshoe-shaped mountainous state in the Northeast, bordering China and Myanmar. Tillghk is in his seventies and worldly-wise. But he was never a man of letters until he began learning the ABCs of English in the… Continue reading Elderly Apatani village heads learn English alphabets

Sariska sets its natives on tiger’s trail

As the sun was about to call it a day, an eager anticipation gripped the senses. It was reflected in the immediate jungle surroundings. Two peacocks cawed shrilly.  Inside the Sariska National Park and Tiger Reserve in Alwar district of Rajasthan, about 200km from Delhi, two men surveyed the craggy landscape covered with scrubby arid… Continue reading Sariska sets its natives on tiger’s trail

Business becoming the buzzword for tribal youth in Gujarat

Arvindbhai of Dhangadi village in Dang district of Gujarat proudly displays the bamboo craft items that he has made in his business unit. But he wasn’t always a bamboo artisan. Arvindbhai used to work as an art teacher in a primary school. But he lost his job during the Covid-19 pandemic. He had no job… Continue reading Business becoming the buzzword for tribal youth in Gujarat

A dose of dandelion soothes Kashmir’s palate and health

A carpet of yellow flowers covers the ridge along the foothills of the snow-capped Zabarwan in Srinagar’s unblemished, outdoorsy stretch abutting the city’s landmark Dal Lake in springtime. Amidst the pristine surroundings, Shahzada Bano, a middle-aged woman from Srinagar in Kashmir, picks the flowers and leaves, and puts the harvest in a wicker basket. What… Continue reading A dose of dandelion soothes Kashmir’s palate and health

‘We have no clue about extent of damage to biodiversity’

Village Square: What inspired Satpuda Foundation to take up wildlife conservation? Mandar Pingle:  Satpuda Foundation is a non-profit organisation working in the central part of India, which covers seven important tiger reserves. This region is extremely crucial.  When we started in 2001, our idea was to work in a big landscape. Initially, the work was… Continue reading ‘We have no clue about extent of damage to biodiversity’

Rajasthan village teams up to revive dhok trees, vultures

More than 350 million rural poor in India depend on common lands (25 percent of India’s landmass), including community forests, pastures and ‘wastelands’. Common lands help communities meet the basic needs of food, fodder, water, medicine, firewood and timber. They also provide critical ecosystem services like surface and groundwater, soil nutrients, safe habitat for wildlife,… Continue reading Rajasthan village teams up to revive dhok trees, vultures

Khejri – the wonder tree of Thar desert

In the vast expanse of Thar desert of Rajasthan, water is scarce and the scorching heat makes survival a challenge for the people and animals living in the area. The Khejri tree is one of the few species that meet the challenge head on. Khejdi or khejri (Prosopis cineraria), also known as shami in Rajasthan,… Continue reading Khejri – the wonder tree of Thar desert