Featured Story
Women are still considered beasts of burden in rural India
Women carrying enormous head loads remain a common sight in large swathes of the country, indicative of our gender insensitivity and skewed priorities
Musahars in Bihar struggle to educate their children
Derided as eaters of rats, a large number of Mushahars in Bihar villages see education of their children as the only way out of the oppression they face daily but the going is still tough
Damage to Kashmiri handicrafts is affecting livelihoods
Sales of handmade Kashmiri carpets and shawls, which are the most profitable proportion of the valley’s once-thriving handicrafts industry, have declined drastically as machine-made products flood the market
Campaign by tribal women groups brings down alcoholism in Attappadi
When women living around Attappadi Reserve Forest found that no development was possible due to chronic alcoholism among the tribal men, they banded together to rid the area of the menace and start a labor bank for employment
Impure honey eats into small producers’ margins
Independent and small beekeepers are uniting against adulterated and diluted honey sold in the domestic market by companies fighting a price war
India should gear up for a blue revolution
The productivity of inland fisheries can be boosted massively if governments get out of the way of operations and let fish enterprises grow across India
Communities in Andhra Pradesh find success in inland fisheries
Minimal interventions in Andhra Pradesh districts such as Visakhapatnam, Vizianagaram, and Anantapur show that it is possible to boost the productivity of inland fisheries without too much effort
Chronic water scarcity has turned Kulappadi’s toilets into goat sheds
Rapid deforestation and soil erosion in Attapadi Forest Reserve has led to a crippling water shortage in Kerala’s only tribal block and the Irula forest tribe has suffered the most
Setting up a model for government primary schools
A government school in Kardelwadi village in Pune district taught by a husband and wife duo has established a benchmark for primary education in Savitribai Phule’s Maharashtra
Drummer girls of Bengal step up with a new beat
Despite long neglect, the dhak might be getting a new lease of life as women have stormed a male bastion and have taken up playing Bengal’s traditional big drum
It’s much better to dig than to build for water
Learning from some exemplary instances in drought-prone Marathwada, it makes sense for government programs to dig tanks and deepen streams for water sufficiency instead of building expensive structures
Kerala fights drought with recharged wells
For a region that does not want for water, Kerala is extending a rainwater harvesting programme in the central district of Thrissur to all parts of the state following the recent droughts
Malkangiri child deaths: disease or malnourishment?
The large number of children dying in Malkangiri district of Odisha has been officially attributed to Japanese Encephalitis and malaria but villagers and civil society organisations say that malnourishment has contributed to these avoidable deaths
Women standing united can power sustainable social change
Women’s collectives can go a long way in sustainably changing socio-economic conditions of villages for the better, often going far beyond planned interventions by state or civil society actors
Palghar’s tribal farmers sow and sell as a collective to reap benefits
Collective farming is not only helping farmers sell their produce far and wide but has also arrested migration and increased the well-being of farmer families
Convenience drives farm practices more than sustainability
For all talk of sustainable farming practices than often entail increased drudgery, there is a clear trend that farmers are swayed by convenience and ease of use more than anything else
A tale of two women and a watershed
Two unlearned women in a remote area of Bihar have broken gender stereotypes to emerge as community leaders and manage the construction of a watershed that now benefits 12 villages
Integrated organic farming revives Nemmeli’s fields
A holistic method of organic farming has reversed the harm reached to Nemmeli village due to high-intensity, high-inputs agriculture. It has also helped in pushing back soil salinity
New education policy fails to address issues of equity
The 2016 education policy of India reinforces the status quo through its tacit acceptance of stratified education, the intense focus on regimented outcomes and competition, and its inability to decentralize and empower teachers
Small vegetable and poultry farmers severely affected by demonetization drive
Three weeks into the surprise announcement by the government to withdraw high denomination currency notes from circulation, it is now clear that producers of perishable commodities such as vegetable and poultry have been seriously impacted