Health & Nutrition
Common kitchens – what’s cooking in Kerala?
Work and other commitments vying for time, one cannot spare time to cook. What started out of necessity for two couples is making "common kitchens' spring up across Kerala.
1 billion doses down
In nine months one billion doses of the COVID-19 vaccines are taken – a feat that would not be possible without the development community mobilising local influencers to help get the job done.
Lockdown cash crunch effects organic farming
With the men away, women farmers had no money to buy chemical inputs during the lockdown and shifted to organic farming. They are already reaping the benefits
Nutrition gardens help students learn better and eat better
Growing vegetables and fruits in schools with community support improves tribal students’ conceptual understanding of science and maths, and helps them eat a nutritious meal
How bike ambulances help patients in remote areas access hospitals
For far-flung villages separated by forests with no access roads, reaching hospitals has been difficult. Bike ambulances fill the access gap, enabling patients get emergency medical care
Ageing with dignity – A dream worth pursuing
Targeting the elderly, Aging with Dignity initiative brings them primary health care, restores their self-worth and self-respect, and helps them live their twilight years with dignity
Community kitchens help tribal children overcome malnutrition
Rough terrains hampering access to anganwadi centers and hence nutritious food, men bring anganwadi ration to the village; women cook in a common facility and feed the children, to fight malnutrition
Lack of basic amenities adversely affect tribal women’s health
Limited livelihood options forcing tribal men to migrate, women bear household responsibilities. Fetching water and firewood, besides farm work being arduous in the hilly terrains, women endure health challenges
Kitchen gardens improve nutritional diversity of Kondhs
Overcoming taboos and becoming more knowledgeable about abundant local foods, malnourished Kondh people in Odisha are bringing diversity to their food baskets through backyard kitchen gardens
Healthcare of elderly suffers with youth migration
With little livelihood opportunities in villages, the youth in rural Maharashtra migrate to cities, leading to delayed healthcare of elderly dependents and increased medical expenses
Mental health patients see better days in Jharkhand
Misconceptions about mental health lead to mistreatment of afflicted tribal people in Jharkhand. Awareness initiatives, community support and treatment are now improving their lives
Lack of skilled professionals hamstring underdeveloped regions
The severely underdeveloped central and eastern hilly tribal belt in India is poorly served by skilled grassroots professionals such as teachers and paramedics, a problem that has no easy solutions
Odiya tribes shed tradition to space out childbirths
Odisha’s tribal women, suffering the adverse health effects of childbirths in quick succession combined with strenuous agricultural and household work, are breaking community norms to use contraceptives
Better awareness improves maternal and child health
Awareness meetings that equip women with knowledge on health and nutrition during pregnancy and after childbirth is helping to tackle malnutrition in rural Singhbhum in Jharkhand
Bhunjia women need better care after childbirth
Women of Odisha’s forest-dwelling tribes face a greater health risk because of their preference for childbirth at home. Counseling by health workers is now slowly helping new mothers get better postnatal care
Missing foot soldiers in the war on poverty
Unless the government improves the anemic delivery structure of rural health and education, the neglected and overworked frontline workers will not be able to fight underdevelopment adequately
Community bathrooms help women bathe in privacy
For most women in Bengal’s villages, a bath is a hurried dip in ponds while fully clothed to avoid the unwelcome male gaze. Community bathrooms enable them bathe in private and maintain better hygiene
Kerala volunteers improve life of mental health patients
A volunteer-driven community initiative offers professional diagnosis and free mental health treatment to patients from marginalized sections in rural Kerala, and helps them to return to normalcy
Cooking in iron kadhais combats anemia in Jharkhand
A women's collective movement of cooking in iron kadhais (woks) that helps in reducing the incidence of anemia in rural women is gathering pace in many parts of Jharkhand
Talcher villages suffer from industrial waste
With coal industries and washeries polluting land and water, and adversely affecting health, people around Talcher’s industrial hub hope for better administrative support in effluent management