Rural India
Medicinal herbs can form a base for rural enterprises
There is a potentially large livelihoods and enterprise potential in the medicinal herbs sector, which is sadly neglected by grassroots development professionals and ignored by the government despite an acute shortage of modern healthcare services in rural India
Enterprising woman farmer charts a path to prosperity
From an impoverished homemaker to a successful farmer and trusted counselor for many women in the area, the story of Sangita Mhatre of Mande is an inspiring tale of how women in rural India can take charge of their destiny given the slightest of opportunities
Rural India needs a reformed NGO sector
The need of the hour in the non-governmental sector is for the government to keep a transparent check on non-performing NGOs while recognizing and appreciating NGOs and their teams that make a positive contribution towards rural development
Non-farm enterprises as job creators in rural India
Targeted interventions and managerial assistance to promote non-farm rural enterprises have the potential to create a large number of jobs in the countryside while at the same time stemming the flow of distress migration
Is direct benefit transfer really a panacea for the rural poor?
Given the complex and varied situations in rural India, the results of the direct benefit transfer method are so far mixed at best and debilitating at worst, as seen in the subsidies for farm equipment and fertilizers
Empowering rural women in Assam through the Internet
Women trained in the use of the Internet are fanning across four districts of Assam to bring its benefits to rural women, which in turn is boosting their household earnings and changing everyday lives for the better
From subsistence farming to agroforestry and prosperity
Farmers in the southern reaches of Pudukottai district in Tamil Nadu have turned to agroforestry to protect and boost incomes because falling groundwater levels and overuse of chemical fertilizers and pesticides had made agriculture unsustainable in the area
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
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
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
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
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
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