The day of the birdwatchers

For an avid birdwatcher, the annual migration of birds from cold Siberia to warmer climes has all the ingredients of a of a high-tension drama."It's exciting," says a wide-eyed Iqbak Mullik, director of Shrishti, a NGO which espouses the avian cause. Shrishti organises bird counts across the country. It has 7 regional coordinators stationed in different states. Armed with binoculars, they gear up for action every January.

Beacons for the blind

INDIA has 12 million blind people and about 8 million people who are sightless in one eye. The main causes of this disability are nutritional deficiency and lack of health education -- blindness can be prevented and cured. "Eye diseases associated with malnutrition are more common in the south than in the north due to poorer dietary habits in the south," says Nasib Singh, honorary member of the Delhi branch of the Blind Relief Association.

Learning to think green

THE increased momentum of the environment movement and the rising media attention paid to environmental issues has created a great demand among the general public, non-government organisations (NGOs), professionals and the youth for environmental education and awareness.

Empowering the Disabled

A SPASTIC is one who suffers from cerebral palsy, an impairment of the muscle control centres of the brain, rendering ordinary activities like speaking, swallowing and walking very difficult. More often than not, a narrow social outlook is responsible for the isolated existence of these children affected by this condition.

No greenhorns here

MORE films are being made on environmental issues than ever before; films that closely document issues, as well offer different points of view on the growing global environmental crisis. Many NGOs, activist groups and individual filmmakers have been have being driving their points across through the powerful and seductive medium of the screen.

The winter of content

FOR INDIA'S aged citizenry, some good news lies ahead. The country is expected to have 76 million 60-plus people by the turn of this century, but the government's response remains blinkered to pension schemes. Now, many voluntary groups have taken on the work of providing care and warmth to the elderly.

To the defence of the defenceless

MORE than 30 years after the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act was passed, a lot still remains to be done to prevent maltreatment of animals, whether they be pets, live-stock or wild animals. The main problems have been exposing and preventing unkind acts perpetrated on animals. To deal with these problems, the Animal Welfare Board, an autonomous body, was formed by an act of Parliament in 1960. The board has

The sun in your kitchen

COOKING accounts for almost 50 per cent of the huge gulps of energy consumed in the domestic sector. To reduce the pressure on the fast-shrinking reserves of commercial fuels, the ministry for non-conventional energy sources (MNES) launched a subsidy scheme for solar cookers in 1982, making them available at a price substantially lower than the manufacturing cost.

Efficient use of a scarce resource

Same problem, differing approaches

ESTIMATES of air pollution in Delhi caused by various sources vary, except in the case of vehicles. K P Nyati of the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), says about 70 per cent of the air pollution is caused by vehicles, about 20 per cent by power plants and the rest is from industry and other sources. However, according to B Sengupta, a scientist with the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), power plants account for 10 per cent of the Capital's pollution, industries 16 per cent and others 4 per cent.