Denial of the rural

At loggerheads

While the state government is keen to introduce JFM, villagers say there is no need for that since they have been carrying out all protection …

Message in a baton

The decades after Independence saw rampant destruction of trees. This was followed by years of drought. It was then that the villagers realised …

Thirsty for breath?

Contaminated drinking water can lead to respiratory problems

Forgetting science

Loose bones

Fluoride contaminated cripples many in villages near Lahore

On The Warpath

They prefer to be called the 'forest castes'. They are the 2,000,000-odd villagers living in some 10,000 villages across Orissa. After …

Banks expand arms, but not through branches

Smart cards, biometric ATMs, mobile phones the new tools

Nobody's waste

Kerala's capital wants a solid waste treatment plant in a nearby village. This has created a rural-urban conflict

Tehri: is it curtains?

The beginning of submergence of Tehri also marked the drowning of anti-dam sentiments. Any strong protest was conspicuous by its absence. Does …

This DROUGHT is sponsored by Govt. of India

Who is really behind our water problems?

Bank at your doorstep

Technology is helping public sector banks find customers in rural India. This is part of the Centre’s efforts to include villages in the …

Aaj Ka Roadshow

Liberalisation in India has not only affected humdrum life, but also popular cultural forms. This is palpable in the changing dynamics of the big …

Born Again

A rural organisation breathes life into the listless people of Melaghar village

Above All Differences

A caste-ridden society transforms the depleted forests into a green haven

Working women

In Guraiya village , it's women empowerment all the way

Solo Performances

Besides the communities who have done exemplary work in the field of environment, several individuals are making a difference in the lives of …

Hamlets reborn

Although Bhaonta-Kolyala village walked away with the Down To Earth-Joseph C John Award, the judges came across several such communities worthy …

Awarded : Bhaonta-Kolyala

... for reviving the Arvari river, for showing that a healthy ecology and good water management mean prosperity, for proving that drought is a myth

Shrouded in controversy

A mountaineering expedition into the Nanda Devi Biosphere Reserve revives the debate on ecotourism and people's rights over forests.

A belief in tradition

It was a unique ceremony for a unique award given to a unique rural community of India. In what is perhaps the first ceremony of its kind, …

Bad feed

New lands of the free

New lands of the fat?

Land of the Free

India's nutritional puzzle

From the maw of the Indian state there has emerged an undigested piece of development cake: nutritionally speaking, people's diets are out of …