Ground Report
Perils of anganwadi worker not showing up for work
A childcare worker in an anganwadi is a vital part of a village - ensuring the health and growth of rural children. A young development professional observes the consequences when there is no worker for months.
An educator and his rural school with a difference
The likes of this advocate-turned-educator who offers quality education to rural children and works for rural development, are an inspiration for society’s progress, says this young development professional.
Where are women in local government?
Dismayed by seeing very few women in district-level government prompts two young development professionals to find out why.
No longer walking 2km to fetch dirty water
When government water schemes do not reach two tribal villages of Rajasthan, the women of Chittorgarh take matters into their own hands and install a treatment plant and a piped water supply system.
A lighthouse in the gloomy world of cooperatives
When cooperatives had gone out of fashion, a Keralan cooperative society found a way to keep growing by listening to customers and evolving to fit their needs, as two graduates passionate about rural development explain.
How the youth built and build India
Contrary to the myth that youth are self-absorbed, many young women and men not only fought for Independence but in the decades that followed have given up well paying jobs to work on India's development - which the youth of today carry forward.
The infrastructure woes of government offices
While governments spend large sums of money to build swanky administrative offices, no one seems to give a thought about their upkeep and the necessary basic facilities for a conducive work environment.
Life-changing Sunderbans trip creates SOUL
A weekend trip to the remote and underdeveloped G-Plot island prompts a corporate executive to quit his job and start SOUL - dedicated to improving the life of the Adivasis living there, as reported by a SOUL volunteer.
How do tribal households view government interventions?
Contrary to general opinion that tribes are a neglected lot, they are not only aware of the various government schemes for their welfare but are happy about the implementation.
Our water, our management
It is vital to tap the local community - get them involved - when implementing piped-water supply schemes through the Jal Jeevan Mission, as the lessons from Panna, MP prove.
Mud houses that help keep the cool
While the monsoon brings relief from this summer’s soaring temperatures to some, development worker Jyoti Rajput looks at how Rajasthani tribes beat the heat in their mud houses.
The vanishing art of weaving bamboo baskets
A couple struggling to earn money by weaving bamboo baskets – their traditional livelihood – makes a development management student wonder if it’s wrong to expect some support from the government.
Why do women revert to the chulha despite Ujjwala Yojana?
Some rural women still do not use cooking gas because it is not affordable. A development student feels that the government needs a bottom-up approach in designing welfare schemes.
The voice of a labourer
A villager who raises his voice for labourers’ rights and juggles multiple jobs to make a living inspires a development management student to be courageous and just. The lead image shows Grishma Kajbaje and her friend during a field visit.
A veil won’t cloud her vision
A development management student is inspired by a strong and bold former woman panchayat leader who overcame all odds in a highly patriarchal society to develop a model village.
Uninhibited menstruation talk on “Hello Saathi” helpline
Want to have an uninhibited talk about menstruation? Try the “Hello Saathi” helpline, a game-changing scheme from the menstrual health group Uninhibited helping 150,000 people in less than two years, as two of its practitioners report.
When a wedding gift becomes a high interest loan
Development professional Sanjana Kaushik discovers how notra tradition, once a beautiful culture of generosity and oneness, where everyone in the Bhil tribe helped host weddings, has sadly become a vicious money-lending cycle.
“Beej Gram” scheme makes farming financially viable
Farmers benefit by distributing seeds produced from the high quality foundation seeds that the Government of Madhya Pradesh supplies at a subsidised rate.
Taekwondo master gives confidence kick
Development management student Shashvi Thakur is inspired by a passionate and progressive taekwondo blackbelt who trains young girls and boys from the marginalised Bedia community in Madhya Pradesh.
Perils of not having a birth certificate
One in 10 children under the age of five do not have a birth certificate in India. This makes them invisible to the system, unable to avail of state benefits. But one district in Madhya Pradesh is trying to buck this trend, as development fellows Sohinee Thakurta and Smriti Gupta have discovered.