Lake cleaner
Besides striving to bringing sparrows back, volunteers of Environmentalist Foundation of India clean urban lakes and beaches. P C Vinoj Kumar meets the founder, who earlier worked for Google
Once upon a spy
A former RAW officer is now on a mission to rehabilitate a community of people, known to eat rat and called Musahars in Bihar. Realizing that they were joining naxalities, J K Sinha started educating the children. Souzeina S Mushtaq reports
Positive woman
It was a positive attitude that enabled Kousalya Periasamy overcome tragedies in life and take up activism. P C Vinoj Kumar meets India’s first woman to openly declare her HIV positive status and finds out about her work among women like her
People's media
If journalism is a pillar of democracy, what do you have to say about democratized journalism? CGNet Swara is an innovative media that touches the lives of tribes in central India. Souzeina S Mushtaq meets its founder, Shubhranshu Choudhary
No kid stuff
Two kids have been chosen for "Pramerica Spirit of Community Awards", a school-level recognition programme for volunteer community service. Shilpa Raina meets Aakash Pawar and Maneka Sharma
Banking women
She realised that banks are not women-friendly when she was an employee in Jorhat. So Lakhimi Baruah started her own urban cooperative bank, says Ratna Bharali Talukdar
Helping widows
In the city of widows, where women are just dumped by relatives after the husband's death, there is an air of despair and helplessness. But there is one ray of hope, too: Laxmi Gautam, an academician in Vrindavan. Afsana Rashid spoke to her
Shining example
A school for destitute kids is run on funds mobilized through shoe shining. School founder, S Selvakumar, visits places to collect money by wiping or polishing footwear, says P C Vinoj Kumar
Benign borrow
Entire India will soon come under the cover of Arogya Finance that lends money for the poor to go for medical treatment. Supported by social venture funds, Arogya is in nine States and has helped over 400 persons, says Kavita Kanan Chandra
Lady porter
North Western Railway’s first woman porter, Manju, was forced to take up the job at Jaipur station. She learnt most tricks of the trade but not the art of negotiating rates, says Abha Sharma
Pet project
‘Rickshaw Bank’ is a project that helps rickshaw pullers. It was born out of a conversation Pradip Kumar Sarmah, a veterinarian, who had taken animal health care to rural areas in Assam, had with a rickshaw puller, says Souzeina S Mushtaq
A big fight
A woman sarpanch of a tribal community in Madhya Pradesh has successfully led a struggle for restoration of forest rights and ensured her people’s food security. Shuriah Niazi meets Santa Bai
Action cop
His was a career dedicated to fight graft, through unconventional methods. Now the former cop is advisor to the anti-corruption cell of Aam Aadmi Party. Souzeina S Mushtaq profiles N Dilip Kumar, called as ‘action hero’ by a news magazine
Another war
If Kalinga war transformed Ashoka, the Kalinga institute in Odisha is transforming the lives of thousands of tribal children. Jatindra Dash meets the founder of the institute, Achyut Samanta
Natives' return
The return of Sabbah Haji and her family to their hometown in Kashmir’s Doda district has helped local children as the school started in 2009 is still growing. Afsana Rashid finds the school running with the help of volunteers from outside
