GENRE: Voices

Public libraries, often referred to as the 'people’s university', form an integral part of the social framework. They are not just institutions for borrowing books, but also providers of information, knowledge and education, making them the social nerve of any locality. In Karnataka, public libraries are governed by the Karnataka Public Libraries Act, 1965. The lack of a legislative review over the years has led to problems with the availability and accessibility of public libraries for all sections of society. The global pandemic has given rise to a new set of challenges that libraries are now facing, exhibiting their inability…

Did you know that the launch of textbooks in Hindi on anatomy, biochemistry and physiology for first-year MBBS students, to presumably replace the ones in English that have been used historically, will convert India’s “brain drain” into “brain gain”? How exactly that will happen is not clear. But so said Union Home Minister Amit Shah at a launch function of these books in Bhopal last month. There was plenty of other rhetoric by various speakers at the function. Including invoking Nelson Mandela, who was quoted as having said “If you talk to someone in a language, it reaches their brain.…

In its annual report titled ‘State of Policing and Law and Order in Mumbai, 2022’, PRAJA Foundation revealed that 98% of the total cases in Class II serious offences, including murder, crimes against women and cases under Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act are pending for trial. In cases where the trials were completed, 86% ended in an acquittal or discharge. The data was based on findings from applications under the Right to Information (RTI) Act and data published by the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB). Read more: Is Mumbai really safe for its women? Data suggests otherwise…

The government recently announced that it will now ease the travel woes of residents by cutting travel time between South Mumbai and Navi Mumbai to 30 minutes. The Mumbai Port Trust (MbPT) will soon launch a ferry service from Belapur in Navi Mumbai to Gateway of India. This forced me to do some research on this subject. CIDCO (City and Industrial Development Corporation) recently made two jetties within a distance of hardly 4 km from each other: one in Belapur at a reported cost of approximately Rs 10 crore, and another one in Nerul costing more than Rs 111 crore. Both were…

Most people do not know about an anganwadi worker’s responsibilities, they think this is a voluntary service that can be compensated with an honorarium. I share my story here to tell you about my work, my goals and my experiences as an anganwadi worker. I have been an anganwadi worker since 2002 and I recently completed 20 years in this role. Although my children were 12 and 9 years old respectively when I joined, I faced a lot of trouble managing my household responsibilities, ensuring they are cared for, picked up from school and fed while I went out to…

Mother was diagnosed with schizophrenia. I didn’t even know the word, had never heard it and didn’t even know how to pronounce it. But Schizophrenia discreetly entered our lives way back in 2007-2008. I was a kid then: 7-8 years old. So it was tough to even know what was happening. She would randomly make stories. Once I returned from school after an examination and she said, “I have told your friends' mothers that their sons teased you.” I was simply aghast. Both my friends were a year older than me and lived nearby. No such incident had ever happened.…

Mumbai should aspire to host the Olympics games in 2036, and working towards being Olympics ready will ensure Mumbai gets good infrastructure by creating jobs and helping the local economy. The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has been selecting a different city to host the Olympic games every four years since the first modern games were held in Athens in 1896. India should compete for the bid and nominate Mumbai as the host for the Olympics games 2036. The crucial chance to make that happen will be in 2023 when the IOC meets in Mumbai. I am a volunteer for Mumbai March, an…

I could barely contain my excitement as I stood looking at the Biswa Bangla painting ‘Making of the Goddess’ at the airport. It was Panchami and I was finally in Kolkata to be a part of ‘Pujo,’ which is synonymous with Durga Puja for anyone from Bengal. I had read somewhere that there were around 2500-3000 pandals in Kolkata alone this year and I wanted to see at least 1% of them if not more. After all, Durga Puja in Kolkata had been recently declared by the UNESCO to be on the representative list of the intangible cultural heritage of…

Mumbai's suburban railway network, also known as the ‘local train’, is famous across the country for its robust network. While it connects the entire city, its expansion has also added pressure to existing infrastructure. Overcrowded trains and station platforms are a common sight, especially at busy stations like Dadar, Kurla and Thane. Trains on average carry 2.6 times more than the official capacity carrying 7.5 million passengers every day. When it comes to railway station infrastructure, safety, hygiene and accessibility become paramount for women and children who use trains regularly. Railway toilets form an important part of this infrastructure. Read more: Mumbai’s…

The festival season is almost synonymous with the sale season. It's an excuse to splurge, buy and gift. Advertisements and discounts attract us to many such offers and our shopping carts, virtual and otherwise overflow with binge buys. But this rampant consumerism in festivals is incredibly damaging to our environment, increasing the burden on our resources, and adding to the mounting levels of waste and pollution. With Diwali around the corner, Citizen Matters was joined by two enthusiastic and spirited environmentalists for a panel discussion held on Instagram live, titled 'Conscious consumers: Celebrating in a sustainable and responsible way' on October…