Celebrating rural women – with no bias

From the teenager who sings about the glories of bamboo in Kerala to the tailor who pushes the clothing industry to ensure women get enough loos. From the Jharkhand girl who loved hockey and becomes a coach to the destitute mother who becomes a successful farmer. These are the women we feature in Village Square’s… Continue reading Celebrating rural women – with no bias

Odisha’s “Twitter Girl” helps solve people’s problems

Odisha’s “Twitter Girl” Deepa Barik with the child and mother she helped get a government entitlement through her tweet (Photo by Sarada Lahangir)

Who is Odisha’s Twitter girl? It used to be the “power of the pen” that got things done – now it is a tweet. But one young, selfless woman from Odisha is using this powerful tool not for herself, but to help those on the margins of society. 25-year-old Charubala Barik, fondly called the “Twitter… Continue reading Odisha’s “Twitter Girl” helps solve people’s problems

Young twitcher becomes desert’s star birding guide

Young bird-guide in the Desert National Park, Musa Khan is a sought-after man for amateur twitchers and scientists alike (Photo by Athar Parvaiz)

Most Gen-Xers spend hours looking at social media. But this 27-year-old Rajasthani is passionate about birds, preferring to be a twitcher — a birding guide — rather than spending his time on Twitter. While most of us can’t tell the difference between the different species of larks or even pipits, which look similar beyond minor… Continue reading Young twitcher becomes desert’s star birding guide

UP’s young water evangelist

For her work in helping communities address their water woes, Ramandeep Kaur was honoured as a water champion by the UNDP (Photo by Grameen Development Services)

Meet water evangelist Ramandeep Kaur The sight of people wasting water – even when it’s readily available – hurts Ramandeep Kaur so deeply that she can’t keep quiet. “I hold water sacred and recognise its role in everything we do,” she said. When she sees someone washing dishes or clothes while keeping the tap water… Continue reading UP’s young water evangelist

Hot iron branding of babies fizzles out

Awareness campaigns run by rural healthcare workers are resulting in the reduction of hot iron branding practice (Photo by Tazeen Qureshy)

Plush greenery, thatched houses and rugged roads. Kundei looks like a typical Odisha village. But despite being in the mineral-rich Kendujhar district, this lush village lags in development. Kundei has over 1,000 people, including members of the Juang indigenous community. Like many communities in Odisha and elsewhere, the people of Kundei were unaware of good… Continue reading Hot iron branding of babies fizzles out

The power of exposure trips

This is a story about the power of exposure trips on young development professionals. We set out in a large vehicle on a mildly cold day in December. It was 2018 and I was accompanying a group of tribal women farmers from the remote villages of the Rajnandgaon district in Chhattisgarh on their first trip… Continue reading The power of exposure trips

Weavers keep Bastar’s pata saree tradition alive

Every state or region in India has age-old varieties of sarees to call its own. Bastar and its famous pata sarees Bastar has its very own pata saree, with its maroon or burgundy border and intricate, nature-inspired motifs on a creamy white background. It is the attire that the women of the Dhurwa tribe in… Continue reading Weavers keep Bastar’s pata saree tradition alive

Fish on their plate, money in their wallet

Women in the underdeveloped Mayurbhanj district are reaping financial and nutrition benefits of cultivating fish (Photo Abhijit Mohanty)

Here’s a story about community-based aquaculture, its economic benefits in rural Odisha, and the heroic women behind it. For millions of Indians the pandemic not only meant job losses, it also meant loss of sustenance. Especially for those living hand-to-mouth in rural areas. “When we earn less, we eat less. So our children eat fewer… Continue reading Fish on their plate, money in their wallet

A young woman engineer spurs hope for pottery in Kashmir

Pottery, which was Saima Shafi Mir's way out of depression, now inspires many to take it up as a hobby or career (Photo courtesy Saima Shafi Mir)

With so much talk about depression – especially among the young – it might be hard to imagine that the ancient art of moulding clay can help defeat mental illness. But, yes it can. So says Saima Shafi Mir, popularly known as “Kralkoor,” meaning potter girl in local parlance. Seated at her potter’s wheel, Mir… Continue reading A young woman engineer spurs hope for pottery in Kashmir

Joy of making banking accessible to women

To cater to marginalised and underserved women, Lakhimi Baruah started a women’s cooperative bank in Assam (Photo courtesy Lakhimi Baruah)

Going to a bank is an intimidating experience for some people, especially those who are not educated. If the officious affluence makes a person nervous today, imagine how tense it would have been decades ago – especially for illiterate women. That is why Lakhimi Baruah started a bank in Assam – to make banking easy… Continue reading Joy of making banking accessible to women

How a school parliament grooms Bastar tribal children

Ministers of a bal sansad in Tiriya, a tribal village in Bastar, address issues in their school (Photo by Deepanwita Gita Niyogi)

When the bell rings after lunch at this rural school in Bastar, Chhattisgarh, a group of senior students rushes into a room. But it is no ordinary room.  With its simple yet elegant and eco-friendly bamboo furniture arranged in a semicircle with potted plants at the centre, the room bears some resemblance to the boardrooms… Continue reading How a school parliament grooms Bastar tribal children

Profiting from propagating native seeds

Sudam Sahu conserves many native seeds and encourages farmers to grow them because of their resilient properties (Photo by Sarada Lahangir)

After a crop loss for two consecutive years, Manglu Sahu is happy with a harvest of 44 quintal of paddy from two acres. The marginal farmer of Odisha’s Bargarh district praises local ‘seed saviour’, Sudam Sahu, for coming to his rescue. “I was already deep in debt – I had no money to buy seeds… Continue reading Profiting from propagating native seeds

The lack of sustainable farming prospects in India

What does the future of sustainable farming practices in India look like? Let’s take a look. If we look at the new agriculture programs from the Government of India, the future of sustainable farming practices in India looks bright. For instance, in 2021, the Government announced that the National Mission on Sustainable Agriculture (NMSA) will… Continue reading The lack of sustainable farming prospects in India

Greening barren land – Bihar’s guava guru

Satyendar Manjhi has transformed a barren stretch of sandy land between dry river channels into an orchard (Photo by Mohd Imran Khan)

What was once a barren island in the middle of the mostly dry River Falgu in southern Bihar is now a pleasantly cool and green orchard with the distinct aroma of guava wafting in the air.   This transformation is thanks to the hard work and perseverance of Satyendar Gautam Manjhi — Bihar’s guava guru… Continue reading Greening barren land – Bihar’s guava guru

What the budget means for rural India

The government allocates Rs 2.37 lakh crore for the minimum support price in the Union Budget 2022-23 (Photo by Rahul Raman)

Both the Ministry of Rural Development and the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare will get slightly more funds this year, but with no increase to the rural employment guarantee scheme will the 2022 budget help stop rural distress and the widening inequality made worse by COVID-19? The 2022 budget: A quick glance During Tuesday’s… Continue reading What the budget means for rural India

Abandoned as an infant, she brings up orphaned girls

Having been abandoned as a baby, Parkash Kaur raises a family of abandoned girls (Photo by Balwant Singh)

Every girl is precious. Educate the girl and strengthen the nation. That was the motto with which the Indian government started the Beti Bachao Beti Padhao (save the girl child, educate the girl child) programme in 2014.   But two decades earlier, Punjab-based Parkash Kaur had taken it upon herself to do just that – save… Continue reading Abandoned as an infant, she brings up orphaned girls

Will Dhinkia lose its betel vines to steel plants?

Unwilling to give up their betel farms, Dhinkia villagers protests against land acquisition for a proposed industrial project (Photo by Tazeen Qureshy)

While the port city of Paradip buzzes with coverall-clad workers from the docks, oil refinery and fertiliser plant, there is an eerie air in the surrounding countryside. On the road leading to Dhinkia village several police vans line the narrow road. No one is in sight, except a middle-aged man with a sack of betel… Continue reading Will Dhinkia lose its betel vines to steel plants?

Forget logging or hunting – two Assam villages embrace ecotourism

Notun Leikol is now on the eco-tourism map, thanks to the villagers’ conservation efforts (Photo by Gurvinder Singh)

Discover how ecotourism has contributed towards the livelihoods of the local youths in Notun Leikol and Boljang in rural Assam. Notun Leikol village in Assam is rich in natural beauty with green mountains, silvery waterfalls, orange orchards and scenic surroundings. Around 900 people live in the village in the Dima Hasao district, most of them… Continue reading Forget logging or hunting – two Assam villages embrace ecotourism