Rural India

Started five years back, Educate Girls aims to get as many girls as possible into school so they can benefit from a good education, improve their lives and become an asset to their communities. And what started with just 500 schools has now spread to 4425 schools! Safeena Husain, the founder and Chief Executive Officer, tells us about it.

>Dimagi, which means 'of the mind', is a team of intellectually committed professionals who envision applying innovative, scalable, open-source technology solutions to improve community health programs around the world. Here we present the Dimagi founders, Jonathan Jackson and Dr Vikram Sheel Kumar, two enthusiastic young men with Harvard and MIT background.

When one lives in the city and enjoys excellent health care at one’s beck and call, it is difficult to appreciate the hardships suffered by the poor in remote locations of India. SEWA Rural is an organization that aims at improving the lives of these very deprived people. From healthcare to vocational training, they have been providing holistic development to the needy in Gujarat for 33 years now, and even today, they continue to serve the poor with utmost enthusiasm.

This photo essay captures the range of activities, colours and festivities amidst the verdant hills brought about by the monsoon rains in rural areas of Maharashtra, including the celebration of the Vatapoornima festival.

Read about a remarkable organization working from villages in Tamil Nadu, and exemplifying service in its every deed. With various initiatives ranging from orphanages and a school to medical care and an old-age home, it is interesting to note how they manage the many activities, and how these complement each other and come together as one cohesive whole.

Remember the 2004 Bollywood film in which an NRI Mohan Bhargava (played by Shah Rukh Khan) returns to India and is moved by the harsh realities faced by the people in his village to become an agent of change? The name of that film was Swades, and here is an organization called Swades Foundation that shares a similar mission - to bring about change in rural India. To know how they are doing this, read more.

It is unfortunate that the normal human procedure of menstruation has been regarded as 'impure' and considered taboo for generations of Indians. However, things are changing now, and it is hearty to know that India is at the forefront of disruptive innovations in menstrual hygiene. Here we bring you a 'Bong' duo doing fabulous work in breaking stereotypes and creating a sanitary revolution.

One of the main obstacles in the path of students in India is the absence of reliable sources of illumination. Electricity is non-existent or at best patchy in most parts of rural India, and other sources of light like the humble kerosene lamps pose health hazards, are ineffective, expensive and unreliable. Read how one organization is dispelling the gloom with a viable alternative.

It takes courage to be a shining beacon for others. Especially for young and influential minds. However, it is a responsibility few take on, so that there is some kind of guidance available for children to make those tough career choices at the crucial time in life. Meet Kshitij Mehra, one such shining beacon, spreading awareness in the hills of Himachal at present.

Read about the efforts of a unique financial inclusion programme that aims at empowering women in the the rural parts of the hilly state of Uttaranchal where employment opportunities are scarce, infrastructure is patchy and banks are practically virtually non-existent.