In the last 6 months of working with the Van Gujjar community in Uttarakhand,...
Encouraging The Next Generation Of Girls and Women of Vadasar, Bhuj
The following is a conversation with Preeti ben, Sarpanch of Vadasar Gram...
Forming A Multi-Layer Kitchen Garden
Traditionally, vegetables have been cultivated in household gardens that vary...
Choices And Preferences Of Women In Bhuj
As a woman who has more social class privilege than a lot of other women, I...
The Christmas Canopy In Maheshwar, Madhya Pradesh
One of the key areas where a lot of social enterprises need support is in...
Diamond Rush: It’s All About Luck
“Kaunsa wala khadaan dekhna hai? Sarkaari ya jo naadi kinaare hai woh ?”...
Van Gujjar Settlements In Uttarakhand
It was my third week at Living Lightly and second week at our Dehradun...
डीएनटी समुदाय के साथ सामुदायिक कार्यक्रम
आज़ादी के बाद स्वतंत्र भारत में आधुनिक दौर का आरंभ करते हुए आपराधिक जनजाति...
The Story Of The Black Angrez Of Rajasthan
I am sure all of you, after reading the title of this post are thinking: - Who are Black Angrez? Who can be the Black Angrez? It was just a usual day when I was leaving the school I work in, for a field visit and waiting for the jeep to come. 40 minutes had already...
Domestic Violence : Pegging The Blame
What do you say when a woman you met 20 minutes back, tells you, “Maar-pitai to yahan har ghar mein hoti hai. Maine shadi ke pehle ye sab kabhi nahi dekha lekin is mohalle mein roz ka hi hai. Ab ajeeb nahi lagta, aadat pad gayi hai.” (Violence happens in every home...
How Useful Is A Health Insurance Scheme In India?
Travel (home to block hospital) - Rs 200Medicine - Rs 300Travel (block hospital to private clinic) - Rs 100Medical expenses (doctor fees, caesarean delivery charges, medicines) - Rs 22,000Travel (private clinic to home) - Rs 200Total Expenditure (in 3 days) - Rs...
KHAAN : The Evolution Of A Dead Mine
A few months back I worked on a radio series called Khanabadoshon Ki Duniya (The world of migrants). It focused on breaking the narrative of internal migrants as a threat to development as portrayed by various media. The themes touched upon areas like the...
The Privilege Called Information : Of Hierarchy, Distance and Language
My world view of West Bengal was very limited. West Bengal was just Kolkota. There was no knowledge about the state beyond Durga Puja, fish curry and Tagore. It was my first time in Badwan, a block in the district of Purulia in West Bengal. The place contained 134...
Ladakh : The Land That Was!
It looked like a dream, stayed like an old friend and will be often recalled as the land where most outsiders found bliss, either in nature or in other people and a few, within themselves. Everyone knows Ladakh is heavenly, not just in the way it looks but also how it...
What Renu Managed To Do With Training And Courage
Renu Devi was 7 months pregnant and expecting her second child. It was around midnight that she started having labour pains. She ignored the pain since her expected due date was two months away so she thought these must be false pains. Moreover, it was late at night...
Sanju’s Tryst With Beekeeping
Beekeeping, apart from helping improve crop produce and sustainability, can also provide a viable source of income for many in rural India. An account of how the practice has helped a high-school dropout rediscover his purpose in life, thanks to proper training and...
Humans Of Demonetization : A Digital Campaign
To read the whole story click here Just a few minutes before the official announcement, different corners of this nation had different things to worry about: the capital region wouldn’t stop ranting about the smog, people down-south were worried about a chief minister...
Voices Behind Statistics : The Faces Of The City
I had evidently become curious about every passing human – co-passengers in the metro, rickshaw pullers in the neighbourhood, friends, co workers and the like. No one in my vicinity seemed to belong here. They seemed to have travelled from faraway places in the...
Pidiya, A Unique Bihari Festival For Girls
Pidiya made on wall India is a country of diversity where in every 5 miles the language and water changes. In different states people have different rituals, customs, festivals and celebrations. Having been in Bihar since last few months, I witnessed some rituals, the...
Boating In A Cricket Ground
The title may sound a little weird but this is talk of the town in Mhaswad for the last month. When the fellowship journey started, field visits were usual and I had chance to visit nearby places and get familiarized with the surroundings. The town is gifted (not sure...
Ecological Sanitation or EcoSan
A prodigious concept to know about. During field visit got chance to know about EcoSan. A unique system of sustainable sanitation. It is named as Ecological Sanitation and commonly known as EcoSan. It is the concept of hoop system in which human excreta is converted...
Witches In The Family
A woman who gives birth to a child, takes care of family, can also be a witch. Yes, you heard me right. It’s shocking, but it is the bitter truth of some parts of this country. Witch branding has very strong roots in villages. Research has recognised 12 states where...