Maharashtra sugarcane farmers taught green skills

SUSTAINABLE development is a growing concern for many grassroots organisations, such as the Mukti Sangharsh Movement (MSM) in Sangli district in western Maharashtra. Over the last decade, MSM has involved peasants and labourers in developing scientific alternatives as part of its anti-drought movement, and more recently, in the Bali Raja Dam struggle.

Irula tribals put their skills to new uses

THE WILDLIFE Protection Act of 1972 made illegal the traditional occupation of the Irula tribals of Tamil Nadu. Consequently, the tribals who specialised in catching snakes, rats and termites and in collecting medicinal herbs, took up agricultural labour and road laying -- jobs that could not sustain them through the year.

Former slum now has its own newspaper

A YEAR ago, there was excitement and anticipation in Shaheed Nagar when it was announced that a weekly Hindi newspaper would be launched in the colony. Shaheed Nagar in Uttar Pradesh was once an illegal slum close to Delhi. Today, it is a regularised colony of 60,000 and has virtually become a part of the sprawling metropolis. Most residents are self-employed, running small businesses such as shops, dhabas and furniture houses.

Project brings cheap cement to the village

A FEW YEARS ago, L Narasimharaju abandoned his M.Tech studies at the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) in Bangalore and moved to a village. His mission? To help pass on to the people a technology to make cheap and effective cement for rural areas.

Novel approach to primary education catches on

PRIMARY schools with a difference have sprung up in some villages around the elite Rishi Valley School (RVS) in Andhra Pradesh. These satellite schools, started by the Rural Extension Centre (REC) of the RVS, use instruction cards, puzzles and games instead of standard text books to make education interesting. The instruction material was designed, produced and distributed by the REC and the children are taught by village youth who have passed the 10th or intermediate class.

Transforming a Karachi slum into a tidy suburb

Katchi abadis (illegal squatter colonies) are a common feature in Pakistan's rapidly expanding cities. Karachi alone has 362 such colonies, housing more than 3 million people -- about 40 per cent of the city's population. These settlements have sprung up since the 1970s as a result of immigration from rural Pakistan and from Bangladesh and India.

Tribals solve problems through self - reliance

ON AUGUST 9 the nation was observing the golden anniversary of the "Quit India" movement; that day, in Neralakuppe (A), a settlement of 40 Jainu-Kuruba households near the Nagarhole sanctuary in Karnataka, a different drama took place -- all the villagers fled to the jungle in fear.

Pune citizens keep watchful eye on their city

CITIZEN'S groups in Pune monitor their municipal authorities closely to ensure they do not let the city become a concrete jungle. These groups insist on inspecting town plans, on offering alternative building proposals and on never relaxing the pressure on the authorities, whom they hold accountable to the people.

Helping children find work at home

DINESH Rama of Sathvadi village in Karnataka is 12, and typical of the youngsters in rural South Kanara district, who migrate in large numbers to Bangalore, Madras and even Delhi, in search of a livelihood. Long-exploited by the Shettys (landlords), Dinesh and his friends would normally have resigned themselves to a bleak future. But,

Less fuel, less smoke but more jaggery

Conventional cooking stoves not only consume a lot of fuelwood, they also produce considerable smoke. Any village woman who uses such a stove will tell you that it's a big nuisance. Now this problem has been solved by the Bangalore-based Centre For Application of Science and Technology to Rural Areas (ASTRA), a division of the prestigious Indian Institute of Science. Researchers there have come up with the ASTRA ole (stove), an improvement on the conventional model.