Governance

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Community bathrooms help women bathe in privacy

For most women in Bengal’s villages, a bath is a hurried dip in ponds while fully clothed to avoid the unwelcome male gaze. Community bathrooms enable them bathe in private and maintain better hygiene

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More attention needed on community mobilizers

Rural development programs often take community mobilization for granted, and those who dedicate themselves to this difficult task are ignored or neglected. This needs to change

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Recurrent floods traumatize people in rural Kerala

Even as Kerala reels under yet another flood due to extreme rainfall, people in the tiny village of Upputhode in the Western Ghats are still traumatized from the loss they suffered in last year’s deluge

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Coastal communities in Tamil Nadu prepare for disasters

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Fishing communities living on the Bay of Bengal coast in Tamil Nadu, who are vulnerable to extreme weather events, are being trained by the Tamil Nadu government to prepare for disasters

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Community farming in Goa stops land conversion

Many villagers in Goa have banded together to revive rice cultivation through collective mechanized sowing and transplanting. The success in several villages has now become a catalyst for others

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Battling social fault lines in rural water supply

The laudable aim of supplying piped water to all rural homes will have to tackle the existing power equations that deeply divide our society, and are tilted in favor of the elite in villages

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Water availability and quality in rural water supply

The aim of delivering clean water to rural homes has to address the twin challenges of sufficient local availability of this depleting resource and ensuring basic quality standards

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Maize loses sheen for Bihar’s farmers

Seemanchal farmers, who switched from wheat and jute to water-friendly maize, are earning less despite high demand and good yield, and look to the government to intervene

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It’s raining sand in Rayalaseema

Changes in crop patterns, waning forest cover, an explosion of borewells and the death of a river have produced dramatic effects on land, air, water and forests in Rayalaseema

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Tribal and Dalit youth need new role models

There is need to promote talent among tribal and Dalit girls and boys and build them up as heroes in order to boost self-perception and identity of these depressed communities

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Vineyards of hope amid Marathwada drought

Despite the drought gripping the Marathwada region of Maharashtra, one village in the region has flourished by growing grapes using innovative water saving methods

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Uttar Pradesh youth help elderly access benefits

Lack of literacy and complicated documentation were hurdles that hampered financially dependent rural elderly from accessing the government’s welfare schemes. Educated youth are helping them get the benefits

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Local communities restore Ansupa Lake in Odisha

In a remarkable turnaround, local communities have rejuvenated the weed-infested Ansupa Lake in Odisha in the span of just six months, boosting fishing and income opportunities from tourism

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Peri-urban villages shrivel in expanding rings of dryness

The rapidly expanding cities in western and peninsular India are soaking up water from the surrounding countryside for their own needs, leaving peri-urban villages drier in an already water-scarce region

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Is unsafe behavior linked to social order?

Awareness about safety measures appears to be divided along caste lines in rural Rajasthan. Educating children and frequent awareness programs would ensure villagers’ safety in everyday life

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How to revitalize agriculture in India

The government needs to aggressively promote micro-irrigation and small-scale farm mechanization to improve agricultural productivity. It should also connect farmers with markets using latest technological tools

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Make lives better for rural people

The new government should act swiftly to take a few measures that would improve the quality of life in rural India significantly without being a big drain on the exchequer

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Biodiversity takes center stage in Odisha’s silent valley

Forest communities of Mandasaru hills are taking steps to conserve biodiversity in Odisha’s silent valley, even as the world celebrates International Day for Biological Diversity on 22 May

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When will rural men own up responsibility?

Rather than holding the state solely accountable for bettering lives of the rural poor, we need to also focus on making men, and not just women, take responsible action for the sake of their families

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Dairy farming in tribal regions holds enormous promise

With a little help from the government and specialized agencies, the promotion of dairy farming among the tribal people of central and eastern India has potential to lift millions out of poverty