What is good governance? How well can a person or a community access help or push for a needed change? How often are they heard? Village Square shines a light on the people and schemes making the biggest impact or providing the most unique solutions.
Governance
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West Bengal brings Dokra metal craft back from brink
Revived with the support of the state government and social enterprises, the traditional metal craft Dokra has found its place in art maps, giving artisans in the remote village of Bikna much-needed financial stability
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Land ownership for women needs more attention
The dismal status of women’s property rights in India continues to be a nagging socio-development challenge despite a slew of progressive laws, which need political commitment and institutionalized support
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Information helpline improves local governance in Nuh villages
An information center in Nuh district that lags in economic and social development has created awareness about government schemes and entitlements, and has empowered villagers to claim their rights
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Reversing the indefensible culture of open defecation
Ending open defecation in India’s villages cannot be the sole responsibility of the government. The heads of rural households also need to made responsible to ensure that women have access to safe sanitation
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Village youth in Western Ghats enrich sacred grove
A bunch of passionate young men are saving big trees uprooted in the Sahyadri Mountains by transplanting them at their village’s sacred grove. And that’s just one part of their conservation work
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When the rural elite hijacks welfare schemes
Although there are multiple factors that interfere with the fair implementation of rural welfare programs, it is important to break the stranglehold of the rural elite and often co-opted local administration
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Workers of closed tea gardens struggle to make a living
Tribal people in and around the shuttered tea gardens of north Bengal are living on the edge of destitution and are being forced to a life of hard labor and exploitation by local contractors to stave off starvation
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Araku Valley takes baby steps to address maternal health
An initiative to reach healthcare services to pregnant women and new mothers in the underdeveloped Araku Valley has seen a measure of success in tribal communities ruled by superstition and regressive practices
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Madhubani painters want better deal for their work
Despite global recognition, women painters of the Madhubani folk art form in Jitwarpur village have failed to escape the clutches of middlemen, who corner most of the profits. State initiatives could help stop the exploitation