PEOPLE

When a 30-year-old man from Karnataka felt overwhelmed by suicidal thoughts and a deep sense of hopelessness, he reached out to a government-run tele-counselling helpline. On the other end of the line was a trained counsellor from Tele MANAS, India’s national tele-mental health programme. The counsellor listened patiently, offered emotional support, and guided him to a nearby mental health hospital under the District Mental Health Programme (DMHP) for further care. In another case, a 17-year-old student, anxious about his upcoming exams, called the same helpline. He received practical advice, study tips, and daily motivation. Two years later, he called back…

With more than 7000 kilometers of coastline, India ranks 20 in the world among the countries with the longest coastline. Preserving this coastline from excessive construction is crucial for maintaining the ecological balance and safeguarding the fragile coastal environment.  Uncontrolled development along the coastline can lead to habitat destruction, erosion, and disruption of natural processes that are vital for the well-being of marine ecosystems. In order to protect coastal ecology and conserve the coastal environment, the Government of India issued the Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) in 1991. This plays a pivotal role in mitigating the adverse impacts of construction on…

The elderly population in India is rapidly rising with those above 60 years of age set to constitute 15% of the population by 2036 (22.7 crore), according to the India Ageing Report-2023 released by the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA). From constituting about 10.5% (14.9 crore) of the population in 2022, the population of senior citizens is likely to increase to 20% in 2050 (34.7 crore), thus throwing up new challenges related to their safety, well-being and health. The report also stressed on the need to focus on policies and programmes to meet the needs of the elderly, especially older…

"In our current challenging situation, we're taking life one day at a time," shares Kusum Bhagat, an elderly tribal woman residing in Devichapada, a village near Film City in Aarey. Kusum, currently recovering from blood cancer, finds herself in an ongoing battle to protect her family's ancestral farmland from being turned into a film set. She talks about the struggles of her family with tears in her eyes, while standing on guard next to the farmland, worrying if people from Film City will start the construction work. "We take turns standing guard, and I've been on duty since this afternoon.…

Sanjay Baikar, a Koli fisherman has three boats parked at the Lotus jetty in Worli. The area, where his boats are parked, along with the many others, will soon be taken over by the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) for the coastal road project. The boats were parked at the north of the jetty before the ambitious project began. They were asked to move to the southern section, when the project took over that section of the jetty.  In August, the BMC asked the fishermen to move the boats to another location as they wish to take up this section too,…

On October 1st 2023, we commemorated the Day of the Older Persons. The United Nations established this observance in 1990 to highlight the important role that older people play in their families, communities, and society at large. Each year, the International Day of Older Persons (IDOP) has a specific theme to focus on. This year's theme revolved around “Fulfilling the Promises of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights for Older Persons: Across Generations.” Objectives of United Nations International Day of Older Persons (UNIDOP) 2023 Increasing the protection of the human rights of current and future generations of senior citizens worldwide…

As the 10-day Ganpati festival got over with much fanfare, we delve into its environmental impact and explore some of our stories related to the festival - city's preparations for the festival, the push for eco-friendly Ganpati celebrations, and snapshots from this year's festival, capturing the emotional farewells by devotees. According to civic officials from Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), over 39,000 idols of Lord Ganesh were immersed in various water bodies on the last day, and more than 2,05,722 idols were immersed across Mumbai over ten days. The Ganpati festival is commonly linked to significant environmental consequences. The idols are…

As another lockdown began in Bengaluru, the entire day’s hustle and bustle found itself compressed into the four-hour window from 6 am to 10 am. That's when even the most paranoid of folks leave their homes to buy everything from chicken to cigarettes to chat masala. Some are taken aback when asked to pay Rs. 100 for 5-odd cigarettes while others sigh as they queue up to buy beer at 7:30 in the morning.  Read More: Will your neighbourhood grocery store recover from COVID lockdown? My daily morning ritual was a walk to the main road, to buy newspaper and…

On Tuesday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed the country amidst rising COVID cases and states resorting to lockdowns, curfews and more to contain its spread.  As a young person, I was drawn toward one statement from the speech: "I call upon the youth of India to form small committees and help in COVID administration in their areas. If that happens, the government will not have to put containment zones or lockdowns..."  The PM's comment made me ask myself: are Bengaluru’s youth totally disconnected from social realities? Are they doing nothing about this health crisis? The answer is a resounding NO.…

The annual Chitra Santhe was held on 6th January 2020 in Bengaluru this year. Since 2003, the festival has been celebrating traditional and contemporary art and making it accessible to the public. It has brought art out of galleries and museums to the streets thereby reaching out to broader audiences. The art fair featured over 1,300 artists this year and is estimated to have had around four lakh visitors. For more details, see Yourstory. Artists from outside Bangalore - North Karnataka, Goa, Odissa, West Bengal, Tamil Nadu and Kerala participate. The Kumara Krupa Road leading up to the Karnataka Chitrakala…