On 8th August 2023, I accompanied Laxmi Patkar, a counsellor at Jan Swasthya...
Observations And Realities In Schools At Saharsa, Bihar
Bihar is one of the marginalised states in India in terms of education. It has...
Guftgoo-E-Mewat
“आओ भाईसाहब बैठो, कुछ ठंडा वंडा पीयो” These were some of the first words that...
Fakirani Jats Of Kutch, Gujarat
Since I started working in the corporate IT industry, I've always been away...
Migration And Sanitation
While migration offers economic and livelihood opportunities, it also brings...
सुकमा के स्कूल
देश को आज़ाद हुए 76 साल हो चुके हैं। आज भी हमारे देश में कुछ क्षेत्र ऐसे...
Salma’s Home In The Forests Of Uttarakhand
This is an attempt to understand the world of a forest dweller who is trying...
There Are No Roads But There Is An Ante Natal Care Camp
Organization: Swasthya Swaraj SocietyPlace: Kalahandi, OdishaType of Terrain:...
What Motivates Us?
Not everyone decides to work with organisations that attend to particularly vulnerable tribal groups in highly inaccessible areas, but for those who do, what drives them? What is their sense of purpose? Of meaning in work? Working with Swasthya Swaraj at Kalahandi,...
“Jo Mila Wo Kha Lega Hum”
There is only one SBI branch in Kashipur, and just to get into it, one needs to wait for an hour. Once you get in, it might take an hour or more to get the work done. Wednesdays are worse due to the weekly market. People travel from 5-25 km away to come to the market,...
Why Mansukhbhai Is “Not Okay” With Being Bela’s Last Hand Block Printer
Mansukh Pitambar Khatri looks painfully scrawny and impossibly gnarled, as he bends over a long table spread with a beige cloth. He certainly looks suited to his trade, as he continues to work, oblivious to the heat, using astonishing muscle memory while printing a...
Empowering The Hinterlands During A Worldwide Pandemic
As a part of my field visits to various Panchayats around Kutch, I got to understand the way local administration chose to deal with the pandemic. This process helped me to build knowledge about the steps taken to control the spread of pandemic at the policy level, in...
How The Khatris Are Bringing Josh To Rogan
Mohmad Hanif Arab Khatri comfortably seats himself on the floor. Stretched out before him is a piece of blue cloth, pinned on either side to the legs of a low-length table. Reaching for his dibbi, he pulls out a stylus and a blob of a thick brownish gelatinous...
Of Young Girls And Big Responsibilities
"Their mother ran away with her lover, leaving these girls behind”. I looked around to see the girls who were being talked about. The oldest of them looked at me and smiled as the younger ones held on to her tightly. I went up to them and out of habit, asked their...
How Shakil Bhai is Printing a Different Story, One Block at a Time
It's dirty, noisy and crowded. There's wastewater flowing in from one side. Cows and dogs are picking through piles of garbage, hunting for leftovers. There's an unpleasant stench wafting in the air. It isn't the most welcoming sight to witness, not...
Youth Leadership In Rural Chhattisgarh
Before 2020 could end, we (Nikita D'cruz and I) got to meet a group of 25 local people from the villages of Janjgir-Champa, Chhattisgarh. If you aren’t familiar with the region, it’s one of those towns that aren’t known to many, and have to be referred to, with a...
The Imposition Of Criminality
De-notified Tribes (DNTs) continue to be denied access to housing, healthcare, nutrition, education, livelihood, political representation, justice and lives of dignity. It’s scary how little we know/are taught about this history. This is my humble attempt to spread the word.
To The Last Mile: Digital Financial Services In Rural Communities
Ever since I completed my graduation, got a job and became financially independent, I do not remember transacting much in cash, except for the few instances of grocery shopping at a local market or paying for an auto rickshaw ride. There was always a digital...
A Balanced Diet Amidst Imbalances
Gogunda is a small town (tehsil headquarters), about 35 kilometres from Udaipur city. It has a hilly terrain. The sabzi mandi in Gogunda is vibrant with lots of fresh vegetables and greens. From sugarcane to the nutritious singhada (water chestnut), there is a wide...
असामान्य गर्भाशय
मैं आपसे बात करना चाहती हूँ उस जगह की जहाँ हमने ज़िन्दगी की शुरुआत की| यह किसी घर या मकान की बात नही हैं, बल्कि बात है उस जगह की जहाँ हर किसी को जीवन मिलता है, जहा जीवन का सृजन होता है। माँ के शरीर का वो भाग जहाँ हम 9 माह रहें है, जिसे हम गर्भाशय कहते हैं। प्रकृति...
Water Water Everywhere
The allure of Nizamuddin basti's patterning of two polarities co-existing in the same space. The left is a sombre tone of white while the right is a jumble of vibrant rocks stacked in cement. If it's your first time in a Basti, the Nizamuddin Basti will surprise you....
Inside Sharma Ji’s Religious Haven
Baldev Sharma's* shop where you'll find idols of gods and goddesses belonging to Hindu, Jain and Buddhist faiths, most of which have been carved on order by customers for various temples and homes. Hailing from a lineage of sculptors, Sharma ji, almost on cue, begins...