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At just 25, Shabnam Bashir has mapped 16 hidden valleys in Bandipora, bringing them onto Kashmir’s tourism map. Defying social barriers, she turned her solo treks into a mission for sustainable tourism — creating 40 homestays and seasonal income opportunities for over 60 villagers from the Gujjar–Bakarwal community.

When Bengaluru began expanding rapidly in the 1980s, trees were disappearing. IFS officer Seturam Gopalrao Neginhal stepped in with a plan that still shapes the city today.

When 14-year-old Rithved Girish photographed stingless bees in Kerala’s Mezhathur, he did not expect it to travel the world. His image has now scooped the top prize at Close-Up Photographer of the Year 7.

A 90-day nationwide drive aims to protect over one crore girls annually from cervical cancer, one of India’s leading causes of cancer deaths among women.

Anshul Mishra, a computer science graduate, returned to his roots in Shahjahanpur, Uttar Pradesh, to transform barren ancestral land into a thriving dragon fruit farm. Combining fresh fruit sales with a lucrative nursery business, he now generates impressive profits.

From a transwoman building a shelter for the abandoned to a trust keeping 300+ students in college, these five NGOs are quietly solving real problems — with courage, compassion and community at their core.

After years of buying potato seeds from outside the state, Hooghly farmer Subrata Karmakar began growing his own through HVGPCL. The impact is reaching more farmers than he expected.

Before women had a place in India’s bureaucracy, Anna Rajam Malhotra created one. When told to opt for an “easier” service more suited to women, she stood her ground and chose the IAS. From facing bias in interview rooms to taking on tough field postings, she challenged patriarchy at every step — opening doors for generations of women to follow.

What was once a toxic mountain of 13 lakh tonnes is now reclaimed land worth Rs 400 crore. Under IAS Asheesh Singh’s leadership, scientific biomining and strict accountability helped Indore turn a long-standing crisis into a powerful urban transformation.

In Valparai’s Anamalai Tiger Reserve, a mother elephant stayed by a concrete tank as the Tamil Nadu Forest Department worked carefully to help her calf climb out.