Featured Story

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Time has come to rethink the way we irrigate farmland

Rethinking irrigation needs to focus on end results and in exploring every possible way of reaching water to crop roots. For this to happen, perhaps the hegemony of the irrigation bureaucracy needs to come to an end

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Jaisalsar in Bikaner banishes child marriage from its homes

The villages in the desert of Rajasthan are notorious for child brides but groups of girls are now banding together to defy and upturn a long held tradition to assure a new and better future for themselves

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Interventions to stop child marriages raise hopes in Odisha

The practice of underage marriage is acute in the tribal-dominated southern and southwestern parts of Odisha, but interventions on the ground are planting the seeds of change among adolescent girls and their parents

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Breaking the norm of child marriage an uphill task in Uttar Pradesh

A detailed baseline study conducted in seven districts of eastern Uttar Pradesh shows that underage marriages are still widely prevalent, particularly in disadvantaged communities, and this practice holds back girls from realizing their full potential

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Palghar tribal village says no to child marriages

Despite a long-held tradition of marrying off girls once they reach 15 years of age, a tribal village in the underdeveloped area of Maharashtra has stopped the ill-advised practice of child marriage for the past two years

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Anaj Bank frees Dalits from fear of hunger in Bihar

Community managed rice banks in several areas of Patna district in Bihar have released hundreds of Dalit families from the exploitative practices of powerful landlords by ensuring food during the lean season

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Rural children in Tamil Nadu remain at risk from snakebites

An underreported tragedy, not enough is being done to contain and treat injuries and death of children in rural Tamil Nadu due to snakebites, although it affects around 15% to 19% of kids in the countryside

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Are farmers collateral damage of modern economic growth?

People living in villages, who are migrating in large numbers to urban spaces in search of livelihoods, could be victims of our economic development or perhaps the dismal income growth of farm households is semi-deliberate to keep labor costs low

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A smart village rises in Bengal through agricultural entrepreneurship

A Food and Agriculture Integrated Development Action program implemented independently through a health, education and employment center has transformed Nandangram village in West Bengal by growing high quality farm produce

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Organic farming for better yields takes wing in Gujarat

Inspired by examples of farmers earning ample returns through various techniques of chemicals-free farming, a farmers’ produce company in Rajkot is writing a new chapter on sustainable agriculture in arid and semi-arid zones

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Community resource persons are torchbearers of a resurgent countryside

The silent revolution of community resource persons fanning out across the country in the past few years to deliver last-mile services needs to be strengthened to bridge the divide between shining and deprived India

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Local tribes protest changes in Jharkhand land laws

Recent amendments to laws that govern the use of land owned by tribals in Jharkhand has led to a rash of protests because local communities feel that they might lose their land and livelihoods to industrial development

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Development a distant dream on Elephanta Island

Finally set to get electricity 70 years into Independence, the development and availability of basic necessities of life such as clean drinking water or a health facility remains illusive at the three villages on Elephanta Island

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Droughts, floods, and suicides: What Bihar can teach Maharashtra and other states

A deeper dive is needed to draw insights from the low prevalence of farmer suicides in Bihar than in more developed regions of India such as Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, and Andhra Pradesh

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Murshidabad children set example in local governance

Children in remote parts of Murshidabad district in West Bengal are taking an active role in community governance that not only lets them tackle social ills at a tender age but also nurtures them as future community leaders

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Wild animals spoil farmers’ hard work in Darjeeling

Crop depredation by wildlife is one of the biggest problems facing the livelihood security of many farmers in Darjeeling, with most of them losing up to 40% of their crop every year

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Vadu women emerge as agents of change as health recorders

The regular recording to health-related data through computer tablets is helping in designing and implementing food, nutrition and healthcare interventions on the ground in several areas of Pune district

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After defeating Posco, farmers turn to reclaim betel leaf economy

The formal closure of Posco’s steel plant project in Odisha is seen as a victory of agrarian economy over unwanted industrialization and the betel leaf farmers of Jagatsinghpur are rejoicing, although those who lost their land face new challenges

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Jackfruit enjoys a second spring in Kerala

Growing profusely in the state, jackfruit is no longer a neglected crop in God’s own country because it is fetching high returns for farmers and there’s increasing awareness and acceptance of its many uses

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Living with the clockwork floods of Barak River

The state seems to be indifferent to the plight of the large number of people settled in the Barak Valley in southern Assam, and they are left to fend for themselves when the river routinely floods its banks every monsoon