Incessant rains bring flood of emotions

With the monsoon comes fears for many Chennai citizens, the waterlogged streets a reminder of the intense 2015 floods (Photo by Palani Kumar / PEP Collective)

Noticing rainwater entering her neighbour’s small porch, Karpagam B., decided to call her at 6:30 am, knowing her neighbour would not wake up till much later.  It had been raining in Chennai since the night before and she was on high-alert. She did not want her neighbour to be left with unsalvageable books and computers,… Continue reading Incessant rains bring flood of emotions

Village Vibe photo competition and exhibition

Village Square’s photo competition is helping change the narrative about rural India. (Canva)

“My ideal village will contain intelligent human beings. Men and women will be free and able to hold their own against anyone in the world.” – Mahatma Gandhi Mahatma Gandhi’s vision of India was rooted in her villages – of vibrant people living with freedom, dignity and self-reliance. Yet, as our nation has grown, urban… Continue reading Village Vibe photo competition and exhibition

Women bet big on rearing rabbits

For women like Nibuno Kuotsu of Thekrejuma, a remote village in Nagaland, rearing rabbits is an easy, low-maintenance and profitable venture (Photo by Gurvinder Singh)

Nibuno Kuotsu lives in a pristine village surrounded by a green canopy of mountains and blue skies in the Kohima district of Nagaland, around 50 kilometres from the state capital.  Though she lives in an idyllic spot sought out by many nature lovers, her house is made of tin and supported by bamboo pillars. The… Continue reading Women bet big on rearing rabbits

Keeping Kurumba art alive

The handful of tribes practicing Kurumba art want to keep it alive as it documents their lifestyle and heritage (Photo by Surya Prakash)

Until a few years ago there were no proper roads to get to Baviyur, a remote village of Tamil Nadu where the story of a tribal community has been passed down as rock paintings. Even today there are very few buses that reach this tribal hamlet about 30 kilometres from Kotagiri in Nilgiris district. The… Continue reading Keeping Kurumba art alive

Weak and vulnerable pandemic babies

Children born during the pandemic are bearing the brunt as pregnant women did not have access to health care and nutritious food (Photo by Jigyasa Mishra)

When the COVID-19 pandemic first hit, life became tougher than usual for Khusboo. A, who lives in a Musahar (Dalit) settlement outside Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh. Her husband, who used to work in a fabric factory in Gujarat, lost his job and they could not afford three meals a day.  “I would cook during the… Continue reading Weak and vulnerable pandemic babies

Looking for gold

The tiny gold particles that residents of Ankro village pan for do not bring lustre to their lives

While jewellery shops across India’s towns and cities are abuzz with customers eager to buy shiny gold ornaments during this year’s festival season, a group of villagers in a remote hamlet of West Bengal toil for this precious metal. Meet the gold panners of Ankro village in the district of Purulia. While the word “gold”… Continue reading Looking for gold

Passionate about bamboo – “the world’s panacea”

Fascination for bamboo she developed as a child has made Naina Febin an advocate for bamboos (Photo by Subin Koppam)

Bamboo! The very word perks me up. So you can imagine how I feel near a bamboo plant. Even as a child, for some unknown reason, I delighted in looking at bamboo plants. Wherever we went, I would go in search of bamboo clumps. As a kid, whenever my parents planned a picnic or a… Continue reading Passionate about bamboo – “the world’s panacea”

Eco-activists root for bamboo

As Kerala reels from the latest round of incessant rains and deadly landslides, as families see their homes wash away and others pack up their meagre belongings to leave the backwaters forever, 17-year-old Naina Febin sways her head and sings a song. It is all she can do to stop the emotions she feels swelling… Continue reading Eco-activists root for bamboo

Home insurance ignored by market and government

An aerial view of the flood affected village where the people are sitting on the top of their houses in Bihar.

Kerala and Uttarakhand are two very different states battling a common enemy: heavy rain and deadly landslides. As the death toll continues to rise, homes are also washed away in the gushing waters. Extreme weather events are becoming all too frequent in India thanks to climate change. According to the National Disaster Management Authority, nearly… Continue reading Home insurance ignored by market and government

Early snowfall destroys apple orchards

Apple orchards hit by early snowfall in the Shopian district of southern Kashmir (Photo by Nasir Yousufi)

Kashmir received the season’s first snowfall much earlier than usual, destroying many apple crops in the Shopian area of south Kashmir and leaving farmers in tears over their losses. Though there was an advisory from the government and meteorological department ahead of the incessant rain and sudden snowfall, it takes at least two days to… Continue reading Early snowfall destroys apple orchards

1 billion doses down

Health and development workers help ensure 1 billion COVID-19 jabs are given in Khunti, Jharkhand (Photo by Surbhi Mahatma)

After a slow and shaky start to its COVID-19 vaccination drive, India reached the major milestone of administering one billion doses of the vaccine. “India scripts history,” Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Twitter. “We are witnessing the triumph of Indian science, enterprise and collective spirit of (1.3 billion) Indians.” This massive feat would not… Continue reading 1 billion doses down

Kerala floods trigger more migration

As disaster management personnel work to rescue the marooned, flood-affected people want to migrate

In the picturesque village of Mundakayam, near the Western Ghats, life moves at a leisurely pace. The village in Kottayam district sees a fair share of tourists.  K P Jebi, a bus driver from Mundakayam, had been unemployed since the lockdown began. As the government opened up tourism, Jebi was hopeful of working and earning… Continue reading Kerala floods trigger more migration

“They are all my children”

Neibanuo Angami treats every child in her centre as her own (Photo by Gurvinder Singh)

I still remember those days when I went from door-to-door begging for food and money for the children in our orphanage. I was just 10 years old. I trudged for miles to remote places, dragging my weary feet. My body ached, but I endured the pain to fulfil my mother’s dream. As her only child,… Continue reading “They are all my children”

Of livelihoods in barren terrains

The flat, barren land of Matali, Madhya Pradesh (Photo by Sanjiv Phansalkar)

Matali is a remote village in Barwani district of Madhya Pradesh. It is so remote that the village with five hamlets and about 500 households spread over 13 hillocks of 6 km radius lies in oblivion to the rest of the country. I sat there in the hall of Matali’s gram panchayat listening to the… Continue reading Of livelihoods in barren terrains

Rural social media stars showcase rustic charm

Using social media, young men and women from India’s villages show rustic life has its own charm (Photo by Tazeen Qureshy)

Who could have imagined images of a rural family enjoying a meal of vegetables and mushrooms foraged from the wild would enthral lakhs of viewers? But the unedited, earthy videos that have cropped up during the pandemic, showcasing the charm of rural life, have hooked audiences. They have not only turned the subjects into social… Continue reading Rural social media stars showcase rustic charm

Kashmiri girls pedal out of taboos

Once a taboo for girls in Kashmir to cycle, the pandemic-induced lockdown has led many to embrace pedal power (Photo by Nasir Yousufi)

When the first light of dawn breaks on the horizon, 23-year-old Tanzeela Akhter makes hasty calls to her friends before setting out on their early morning expedition. Donning sports suits, protective gear and wide smiles, they join others along the picturesque Boulevard and Fore Shore Road that curves around Dal Lake in Srinagar. They are… Continue reading Kashmiri girls pedal out of taboos

Solar “pumps” up incomes

Farmers, like Thirumurthi, produce their own electricity from solar panels to power their irrigation system (Photo courtesy N. Venugopal)

Solar panels: A boon to Tamil Nadu’s farmers What is the major problem farmers face on a daily basis? Electricity. Or rather the erratic supply of it, making farmers spend an inordinate amount of money watering their crops. Arjunan Thillai was visibly relieved when he diverted water from the moringa trees on his farm to… Continue reading Solar “pumps” up incomes

Lawyer-turned-farmer advocates for forest farming

Thorny but fruitful shrubs, like cranberry, form a natural fence around Venkatesan’s farm (Photo by George Rajasekaran)

It’s hard to believe L R Venkatesan’s lush mini-forest – full of guava, cranberry, jujube, birds and butterflies – was once barren land. The 3.5 acre plot was covered in limestone that went one-and-a-half feet deep. Most people did not think it was good for much. But Venkatesan had an idea. Though he had come… Continue reading Lawyer-turned-farmer advocates for forest farming