India Today back issues from July 2008:
A lifeterm less ordinary ; New beginnings are in store for an ex-convict and his young students at his elementary school.
Jul 07, 2008; ... At a glance, 46-year-old Deepak Kumar seems assured and focussed.He has become what he always wanted to be a teacher. One who brings a benign smile on the pale faces of hundreds ofchildren who study in his school in Vaishali district. It is hard to believe that Kumar is a ...
The great need ; So what is the Spirit of India? While celebrating this intrinsic nature of India, former President A.P.J. Abdul Kalam reflected on the history of the country and then extended his voyage to the future. Archives: Snapshots of change
Jul 07, 2008; ... SPIRIT OF INDIA A TRANSFORMATION IN THINKING As a nation, we are proud of our civilisational heritage, ourfamily-oriented society, our unity amidst cultural diversity, ourinnovative method of ahimsa dharma that liberated us from foreignrule and our well-tested and stable ...
Task master ; For Abhyanand, who tutors the IIT aspirants in physics, the tryst with teaching began rather by chance in 1989 when his son, Shwetank, then a Class I student, scored zero out of 10 in a class test on single-digit multiplication.
Jul 07, 2008; ... SPIRIT OF INDIA EDUCATION With his sharply-creased police uniform, carefully-combed hairand flashy cell phone, he looks every bit an upwardly mobile IPSofficer, and just as every bit out of place in a classroom full ofclamouring children. But there is no doubt that ...
Basic lesson ; Founded by Pravin Mahajan, Janarth, a not-for-profit organisation operating in Maharashtra, has come up with an innovative alternative education solution for children of seasonal migrants.
Jul 07, 2008; ... SPIRIT OF INDIA EDUCATION For seven-year-old Gopal Tanaji Vanwe, home is not one place.With his parents, migrant farm labourers, Gopal moves from districtto district. It's Beed one season, Jalgaon in another. Millions of nomadicfamilies such as his are not covered by the ...
Learning curve ; A cement floor becomes a blackboard, a fridge is bought with what looks like Monopoly currency and hopscotch gets a twist with numbers written in boxes to be identified as children skip along.
Jul 07, 2008; ... SPIRIT OF INDIA EDUCATION A cement floor becomes a blackboard, a fridge is bought with whatlooks like Monopoly currency and hopscotch gets a twist with numberswritten in boxes to be identified as children skip along. It's summertime and school is over, but 20 km off the ...
Jewel in the rough ; Conserve, a Rs 1.5-crore venture, is her vehicle of change, a result of much deliberation on Anita Ahuja's part, that NGOs should have market-driven products to become self-reliant.
Jul 07, 2008; ... SPIRIT OF INDIA ENVIRONMENT Clad in a sensible cotton salwar-kameez, sporting silver andblack sneakers, she is a powerhouse. She knows what she wants anddoes it. She makes sure waste doesn't go to waste and re-uses it to createthings of beauty. Her main aim is to "ensure ...
Glass apart ; At 70, the commerce post-graduate from Aligarh Muslim University is a pioneer of sorts in this city that, according to The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI) figures, supplies around 50 million bangles to the country every day.
Jul 07, 2008; ... SPIRIT OF INDIA ENVIRONMENT A deep rumble, like the steady snores of a sleeping giant,envelops the factory. The temperature is nearly 75 degree celsiusnear the furnace, the surface temperature being around 300 degreecelsius. Heedless of the heat, men armed with steel rods, ...
Courting green ; Subash Dutta, is a man with a quiet determination as he carried with him a bundle of paper bags his mother had made, which he had to sell to ensure the day's ration.
Jul 07, 2008; ... SPIRIT OF INDIA ENVIRONMENT A young boy setting off for school in the morning, a satchel onhis back, is not an unusual sight in Howrah's crowded bylanes. But what set this little man apart was his quiet determination ashe carried with him a bundle of paper bags his mother ...
Reaping triumph ; 59-year-old social worker, Hasmukh Patel, by his vision and commitment, has achieved something that the government with its ever- expanding machinery could not.
Jul 07, 2008; ... SPIRIT OF INDIA ENVIRONMENT They are just 220 km away from the hustle and bustle ofAhmedabad, but the 42 tribal villages of Amirgadh taluka inGujarat's Banaskantha district could not be more apart. Isolated by the imposing Aravalli hills, there are tribals in thearea who ...
Forest gump ; Not many remember his real name. Kallen Pokkudan is Kandal Pokkudan to most. Kandal in Malayalam means mangroves and for this poor Dalit agricultural labourer, it is an apt monicker.
Jul 07, 2008; ... SPIRIT OF INDIA ENVIRONMENT Not many remember his real name. Kallen Pokkudan is KandalPokkudan to most. Kandal in Malayalam means mangroves and for thispoor Dalit agricultural labourer, it is an apt monicker. Having spent the past two decades preserving, planting ...
Water wise ; Sant Balbir Singh Seechewal has become the state's most-recognised eco-warrior, spearheading a unique campaign against the pollution of Punjab's rivers.
Jul 07, 2008; ... SPIRIT OF INDIA ENVIRONMENT His ochre robes and saint-like demeanour make him look like oneof the ubiquitous dera godmen in the Punjab countryside. But thisbaba stands apart. At his air-conditioned kutiya on the beautifully landscaped,leafy banks of the Kali Bein, a ...
Tanking up ; He's known as much for his Karl Marx beard as his sobriquet. The water warrior from Gaya, 97 km south of Patna, is the resident agony uncle, with people flocking to him for advice on life and work.
Jul 07, 2008; ... SPIRIT OF INDIA ENVIRONMENT He's known as much for his Karl Marx beard as his sobriquet. Thewater warrior from Gaya, 97 km south of Patna, is the resident agonyuncle, with people flocking to him for advice on life and work. The post-graduate in sociology who has refused a ...
Fruit of labour ; M.J. Joseph Appachan has invented a coconut tree-climbing device which can be used by anyone to climb a tree to pluck nuts, tap the basic ingredient of toddy, the indigenous liquor, or spray insecticides.
Jul 07, 2008; ... SPIRIT OF INDIA TECHNOLOGY Kerala literally means the land of the coconut palm and thereisn't a patch in the picturesque state without this ubiquitous tree. Though the coconut or nalikeram in Malayalam has always been apart of the state's culture, cuisine and commerce, Kerala ...
Success curve ; He believes that 1953, the year he was born, was quite significant. It was the year when DNA's double helix structure was discovered.
Jul 07, 2008; ... SPIRIT OF INDIA TECHNOLOGY He believes that 1953, the year he was born, was quitesignificant. It was the year when DNA's double helix structure wasdiscovered. It was also the year Mount Everest was conquered. It clearly setthe tone for his life, for one of the objectives ...
Keeping the flame ; The death of 65-year-old Hil Da Nirtiang was cataclysmic. Not only for her family but for the 8,000-strong Pnar tribe in the Jaintia Hills of Meghalaya as well, which forsook tradition in favour of Ka Khnap-Thangbru, a modern, eco-friendly crematorium designed by an unlettered 69-year-old in Jowai.
Jul 07, 2008; ... SPIRIT OF INDIA TECHNOLOGY The death of 65-year-old Hil Da Nirtiang was cataclysmic. Notonly for her family but for the 8,000-strong Pnar tribe in theJaintia Hills of Meghalaya as well, which forsook tradition infavour of Ka Khnap-Thangbru, a modern, eco-friendly ...
White beauty ; Milking cows could at best be described as a bovine activity. Or so you thought. Not so for a school teacher and dairy farm owner from Murulya in Karnataka, who has silently effected a transformation in this mechanical activity.
Jul 07, 2008; ... SPIRIT OF INDIA TECHNOLOGY Milking cows could at best be described as a bovine activity. Orso you thought. Not so for a school teacher and dairy farm ownerfrom Murulya in Karnataka, who has silently effected atransformation in this mechanical activity. His milking machine ...
Let there be light ; After two years of living without electricity, H. Harish Hande knew what he wanted to do with his life. He wanted to provide solar power to those who had never seen bulbs light up in their homes.
Jul 07, 2008; ... SPIRIT OF INDIA TECHNOLOGY Fourteen years ago, he was the kind of student multinationalcompanies would swoop down on in campus interviews. There wasnothing in his background to even suggest that he wouldn't obligethem after his degree. Armed with a B.Tech from IIT ...
Steering ahead ; I wanted to drive like my father, says Mujeeb Khan, who hasn't been able to walk since the age of two because of polio.
Jul 07, 2008; ... SPIRIT OF INDIA TECHNOLOGY I wanted to drive like my father, says Mujeeb Khan, who hasn'tbeen able to walk since the age of two because of polio. In a country where the physically-disabled are not provided withproper facilities, Khan, a mechanic, decided to take matters ...
Grain gain ; The village of Danta Ramgarh is famous for two reasons. One right, the other wrong. It's the place that inspired former vicepresident Bhairon Singh Shekhawat to take the political plunge. And it's not the mythical Ramgarh of India's most famous action film, Sholay.
Jul 07, 2008; ... SPIRIT OF INDIA TECHNOLOGY The village of Danta Ramgarh is famous for two reasons. Oneright, the other wrong. It's the place that inspired formervicepresident Bhairon Singh Shekhawat to take the political plunge.And it's not the mythical Ramgarh of India's most famous ...
Cooling tower ; The Gujarat Energy Development Agency (GEDA) has sold 250 units of Patel's patented natural water cooler at Rs 25,000 a piece after buying them from a local industrialist whom Patel has given a manufacturing licence.
Jul 07, 2008; ... SPIRIT OF INDIA TECHNOLOGY It was in 1996. Arvind Patel had high fever and to contain it, heput a water-soaked napkin on his forehead. It was a day ofsweltering heat and Patel was sleeping under a fan. As the water in the napkin started evaporating because of thefan, the ...
Scaling heights ; For many years, the electrical supervisor in Ahmedabad's Asarwa Mill was convinced his life was at a dead-end. His was a humdrum existence, cycling to work everyday and returning home to his personal, but seemingly futile, obsession.
Jul 07, 2008; ... SPIRIT OF INDIA TECHNOLOGY For many years, the electrical supervisor in Ahmedabad's AsarwaMill was convinced his life was at a dead-end. His was a humdrumexistence, cycling to work everyday and returning home to hispersonal, but seemingly futile, obsession. He didn't have ...
Tiding IT over ; Following 14 years with the Karnataka State Council for Science and Technology (KSCST), Santhanagopalan Rajagopalan, the founder- chairman of TIDE, along with some friends and colleagues, decided to venture down a path less-trodden taking technology to the grassroots.
Jul 07, 2008; ... SPIRIT OF INDIA TECHNOLOGY A four-and-half-hour drive away from Bangalore lies Tiptur, ahamlet of 53,043 people. The villagers here may not have theresources to fulfil their every whim, but they stand head andshoulders above everyone else when it comes to using technology ....
Rural venture ; In 2002, P. Mukundan, a Chennai based sexagenarian, developed an ingeniously simple stove burner that cuts kerosene costs by 27 per cent.
Jul 07, 2008; ... SPIRIT OF INDIA SOCIETY In 2002, P. Mukundan, a Chennai based sexagenarian, developed aningeniously simple stove burner that cuts kerosene costs by 27 percent. Mukundan had the product but lacked the money needed to takeit to his target audience the lakhs of Indians who cannot ...
Helping hands ; Vandhana Gopikumar and Vaishnavi Jayakumar, who started the Banyan in 1993, an NGO for mentally ill, destitute women accept and care for the underprivileged on the street without inhibition.
Jul 07, 2008; ... SPIRIT OF INDIA SOCIETY Walking away from the underprivileged on the street is secondnature. Accepting and caring for them without inhibition remainsuncommon. But that is precisely what Vandhana Gopikumar and VaishnaviJayakumar, who started the Banyan in 1993, an NGO for ...
The home maker ; K.N. Gopalakrishna Bhat is just a middle-class farmer of Kilinjar village in Kasargode, who derives inexplicable joy by building houses free-of-cost for the poor.
Jul 07, 2008; ... SPIRIT OF INDIA SOCIETY He is not a billionaire bleeding heart in a frantic quest ofGod's brownie points. Nor is he a guilt-ridden moneybag attemptingto display his golden heart. He is just a middle-class farmer of Kilinjar village inKasargode, who derives inexplicable joy ...
Blood diamond ; Chiranjeevi, Telugu filmdom's reigning deity, decided to do in real life what he had so often done in films save lives.
Jul 07, 2008; ... SPIRIT OF INDIA SOCIETY He may be 148 films old and worth more than Rs 1,200 crore but heis an actor with much more than millions in the bank. He commands Rs8 crore a film and now the Telugu superstar is a runaway success offscreen as well. Leading from the front by ...
Weaving a dream ; Admission to one of the world's premier institutions beckoned, Harvard's academic life exerting an irresistible pull on the young woman. But Almora's rustic charms were no less. They won.
Jul 07, 2008; ... SPIRIT OF INDIA SOCIETY Admission to one of the world's premier institutions beckoned,Harvard's academic life exerting an irresistible pull on the youngwoman. But Almora's rustic charms were no less. They won. And for the product of a mixed marriage she has a Punjabi ...
Power point ; It may appear an unfamiliar story, but not so for Bihar's backwaters, where 35-year-old Veena Devi is serving her second-term as mukhiya (panchayat chief) of the Loharpur Panchayat of Nawada district.
Jul 07, 2008; ... SPIRIT OF INDIA SOCIETY Born into a poor family, married at 14 to a man who was oldenough to be her father, she became a mother at 15 and a widow at16. Growing up without electricity or a concrete roof, she had togive up her studies as her father could not bear the cost ...
Friends indeed ; AVG has no warden or caretaker, not even a single salaried employee. The income comes from donations ranging from Rs 2 to Rs 500 per month.
Jul 07, 2008; ... SPIRIT OF INDIA SOCIETY It's a commune with a difference. Its occupants are the orphanedwho dream big and aspire higher. But they don't wait for a saviour.They do everything themselves, from raising funds to managing theoldest orphanage in Hyderabad. Among those who have ...
Thinking local ; Some of the discoveries identified by the Society for Research and Initiatives for Sustainable Technologies and Institutions (SRISTI), an Ahmedabad-based NGO founded by Gupta in 1993, have had a profound impact on society.
Jul 07, 2008; ... SPIRIT OF INDIA SOCIETY Call him the keeper of traditional Indian wisdom. Or a generatorof latent rural Indian energy. Call him whatever you want, butsomething that can't be denied is his place in Indian history as thepilot of the largest-ever knowledge bank made by ...
Smoking buns ; Dheeraj Gupta, who along with his wife nurtured Jumbo King, is moving at top speed to reach his target of 100 by August this year and feeding international technology to growing desi appetites.
Jul 07, 2008; ... SPIRIT OF INDIA SOCIETY He should ideally be lying back on a lazy boy, basking in theglory of having sold five crore vada pavs. But the 34-year-old, who along with his wife nurtured Jumbo King,the bright yellow legend with 42 outlets that every on-the-goMumbaikar is ...
Healing touch ; It has done the highest number of kidney transplants in the country, 193 at the last count, but that's not the only feather in the cap of this research centre in Ahmedabad.
Jul 07, 2008; ... SPIRIT OF INDIA SOCIETY It has done the highest number of kidney transplants in thecountry, 193 at the last count, but that's not the only feather inthe cap of this research centre in Ahmedabad. It is the only one in the country that has been able to create anelaborate ...
Ray of hope ; A group of 10 doctors, in their mid-30s, left the metropolitan comforts of Delhi and came to Bilaspur in Chhattisgarh in 2000. What followed was a public healthcare network, Jan Swasthya Sahayog.
Jul 07, 2008; ... SPIRIT OF INDIA SOCIETY In this overgrowth of dense forests lies a piece of impoverishedsub-Saharan Africa, right in the heart of a gleaming,chromeencrusted nation. In an island of nothingness in a sea of plenty, Third Worlddiseases, virtually banished from private ...
City of dreams ; For the Tanzania-born NRI, Rajendra Joshi, slums are not irrelevant offshoots hindering Ahmedabad's urban renewal but necessary peripheries that are keeping its centre alive.
Jul 07, 2008; ... SPIRIT OF INDIA SOCIETY For this Tanzania-born NRI, slums are not irrelevant offshootshindering Ahmedabad's urban renewal but necessary peripheries thatare keeping its centre alive. Rajendra Joshi has turned around the city's margins, transformingsome into wanted lower ...
Rural vision ; Dressed in an impeccable white kurta-pyjama at his Kalindi apartment in the outskirts of Kolkata, this widower remains the icon around whom the Tagore Society for Rural Development (TSRD) revolves.
Jul 07, 2008; ... SPIRIT OF INDIA SOCIETY It's been over a decade since he retired as a teacher in aSundarbans government school. Yet, life has never stopped happeningfor this man. Now, dressed in an impeccable white kurta-pyjama at his Kalindiapartment in the outskirts of Kolkata, this ...
Doctor at large ; In the middle of Bodoland in Assam's Chirang district, Dr Sunil Kaul, is bringing about a silent movement eradicating the deadly malaria, running a weavers' network and guiding other NGOs in the region.
Jul 07, 2008; ... SPIRIT OF INDIA SOCIETY He is a product of India who is trying to save Bharat. That, in agist, sums up the good doctor who, in the middle of Bodoland inAssam's Chirang district, is bringing about a silent movementeradicating the deadly malaria, running a weavers' network ...
Feminist force ; She has received death threats. She has been beaten with shoes. She has been called the Taslima Nasreen of Tamil Nadu. Worse, she has even been declared anti-Muslim.
Jul 07, 2008; ... SPIRIT OF INDIA SOCIETY She has received death threats. She has been beaten with shoes.She has been called the Taslima Nasreen of Tamil Nadu. Worse, shehas even been declared anti-Muslim. Nothing, though, has deflected her from her chosen path ofempowering Muslim women and ...
Bite of salvation ; Six years ago, a catering technology graduate from Kamaraj University decided to quit his job at a five-star hotel in Bangalore to serve food to the hungry, old, disabled and mentally ill, who wander in the streets of Madurai.
Jul 07, 2008; ... SPIRIT OF INDIA SOCIETY Six years ago, a catering technology graduate from KamarajUniversity decided to quit his job at a five-star hotel in Bangaloreto serve food to the hungry, old, disabled and mentally ill, whowander in the streets of Madurai. All it took to change N ....
Guarding tracks ; What happens to the children who go missing at railway platforms in India every single day.
Jul 07, 2008; ... SPIRIT OF INDIA SOCIETY Anwar Ali is a happy, healthy 12-year old, naughty and prone tonattering, quite the boy next door. It's difficult to imagine hewould ever run away from home. Yet, till a few months ago, he was just one of the 200 childrenwho go missing at railway ...
People tree ; Anasuya Shetty was among the 1,000-odd householders in the region to be swept into the spirited self-help movement, Apna Desh, which encouraged people to take up leadership roles in their villages, becoming their own best motivators.
Jul 07, 2008; ... SPIRIT OF INDIA SOCIETY When Anasuya Shetty, from village Ira in Mangalore district,began a movement against plastic, she did not credit eitherGreenpeace or the UN for it. Shetty was among the 1,000-odd householders in the region to beswept into the spirited self-help ...
Capital country ; Harsha Moily wants to treble the number of customers in three years and expand his bouquet to include insurance, retail and lifestyle products.
Jul 07, 2008; ... SPIRIT OF INDIA SOCIETY He could have settled down in London. He had a good job, a familyto back his dreams and friends to hook up with. But he left all thatto work in India's villages, not giving a handout to the rural poor,but as he says, a leg-up. We are no micro-credit ...
Marathon mission ; Having shed the olive green fatigues of an infantry regiment havildar in 1996, Bhagwan Nagargoje is honing the skills of bubbling youth, turning would-be layabouts into possible winners.
Jul 07, 2008; ... SPIRIT OF INDIA - SOCIETY He is the Dronacharya of distance runners. Having shed the olivegreen fatigues of an infantry regiment havildar in 1996, he ishoning the skills of bubbling youth, turning would-be layabouts intopossible winners. His talent of spotting champions does ...
Different strokes ; A group of children in Maharashtra's Lohra village turns to slogan- shouting (bomb pheri in the local language) outside the homes of school dropouts.
Jul 07, 2008; ... SPIRIT OF INDIA SOCIETY A group of children in Maharashtra's Lohra village turns toslogan-shouting (bomb pheri in the local language) outside the homesof school dropouts. It's their way of embarrassing parents into sending theirchildren back to school. Hundreds of miles ...
Holistic help ; For hundreds of labourers living in extreme poverty, an Allahabad- based NGO is the only hope of preventing them from lapsing into a life of bondage.
Jul 07, 2008; ... SPIRIT OF INDIA SOCIETY For hundreds of labourers living in extreme poverty, an Allahabad-based NGO is the only hope of preventing them from lapsing into alife of bondage. There are no assets because there is no saving. There are nobanks because there is no money to ...
Team worker ; Much before Kabir Khan of last year's inspirational Chak De! India, there was a retired employee of the Ranchi-based Heavy Engineering Corporation (HEC) who knew next to nothing about the national game.
Jul 07, 2008; ... SPIRIT OF INDIA SOCIETY Making a pass. Wielding a stick. Body checking. Much before KabirKhan of last year's inspirational Chak De! India, there was aretired employee of the Ranchi-based Heavy Engineering Corporation(HEC) who knew next to nothing about the national game ....
Citizen first ; Managing a city is an incredibly complex job and no one has understood this better than the founder of Janaagraha in Bangalore.
Jul 07, 2008; ... SPIRIT OF INDIA SOCIETY Managing a city is an incredibly complex job and no one hasunderstood this better than the founder of Janaagraha in Bangalore. The biggest problem is that most people think that the guys incharge are a bunch of jokers. The problem begins there, says ...
Food for thought ; For this 29-year-old first-generation entrepreneur, success did not come easy. In the very first year of his catering business, he suffered a loss of Rs 25 lakh.
Jul 07, 2008; ... SPIRIT OF INDIA SOCIETY For this 29-year-old first-generation entrepreneur, success didnot come easy. In the very first year of his catering business, hesuffered a loss of Rs 25 lakh. He had also incurred debts worth lakhs for his education in BITS,Pilani, and ...
Winds of change ; The first local body in the country to build its own 350-MW windmill, the first to have a community water-supply scheme, the first to install biomass gasifiers to generate power.
Jul 07, 2008; ... SPIRIT OF INDIA SOCIETY The first local body in the country to build its own 350-MWwindmill, the first to have a community water-supply scheme, thefirst to install biomass gasifiers to generate power. These are just some of the many firsts that Odanthurai, 40 kmnorth of ...
Vision divine ; Members of Anyodesh (another land), a theatre troupe from Kolkata led by Shubhashis Gangopadhyay, may be blind, but they face the world with a rare confidence despite being doubly diminished by poverty.
Jul 07, 2008; ... SPIRIT OF INDIA TECHNOLOGY The curtains have been pulled back. Flooded by a beam of light,the stage is about to host Raktokorobi, Red Oleanders, a playwritten by Rabindranath Tagore. The performers, members of Anyodesh (another land), a theatretroupe from Kolkata led by ...
Word smith ; Father Prashant Madtha, a Jesuit priest, has taught Kannada for more than 20 years at St Aloysius College in the coastal town of Mangalore.
Jul 07, 2008; ... SPIRIT OF INDIA THE ARTS Call it a quirk of fate or a coincidence of life. But this Jesuitpriest has taught Kannada for more than 20 years at St AloysiusCollege in the coastal town of Mangalore, the very same place whereGerman indologist Reverend Ferdinand Kittel produced the ...
Melody maker ; On June 4, 2008, as Pandit Ravi Shankar played the last notes of Raga Pilu at the Barbican Centre in London, little did the mesmerised audience realise that the maestro was playing a smaller sitar than usual.
Jul 07, 2008; ... SPIRIT OF INDIA THE ARTS On June 4, 2008, as Pandit Ravi Shankar played the last notes ofRaga Pilu at the Barbican Centre in London, little did themesmerised audience realise that the maestro was playing a smallersitar than usual. Sitting on stage with him was the ...
Manor borne ; What can you say of a man who weeps every time a old heritage building wipes out the past and makes way for the future, in the name of development?
Jul 07, 2008; ... SPIRIT OF INDIA THE ARTS What can you say of a man who weeps every time a old heritagebuilding wipes out the past and makes way for the future, in thename of development? A man who spends all his waking hours sourcing and collectingrelics from history in order to prevent ...
A can-do manifesto ; Every citizen's quest should be to create a better India, whether it is saving the environment, fighting for the rights of the people, making sure even the most underprivileged don't sleep on an empty stomach or enabling the state to be in touch with the needs of its citizens.
Jul 07, 2008; ... SPIRIT OF INDIA Every citizen's quest should be to create a better India, whetherit is saving the environment, fighting for the rights of the people,making sure even the most underprivileged don't sleep on an emptystomach or enabling the state to be in touch with the needs of ...
Helpline to Kabul ; Having transformed the lives of many women artisans at home, Self- employed Women's Association (SEWA) is now setting up a vocational training centre to enable the women in Afghanistan, at Bagh-e- Zanana (women's market), Kabul, to become self-reliant. The courses will last about three months, with the fee ranging from Rs 12,000 to Rs 15,000.
Jul 14, 2008; ... Having transformed the lives of many women artisans at home, theSelf-employed Women's Association (SEWA) is now setting up avocational training centre for women in Afghanistan, at Bagh-e-Zanana (women's market), Kabul. Currently, 35 Afghan women are training in Ahmedabad. The cost ...
South American surprise ; Delhi
Jul 14, 2008; ... In a breakthrough for the virtually nonexistent Indian defenceexport sector, Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL) in Bangalore hasbagged an order for seven Dhruv Advanced Light Helicopters worth $51million (Rs 214 crore) for Ecuador's armed forces. The first Dhruv military utility ...
The buzz of the week ; With the Left digging in its heels, the UPA Government is worried that if it has a showdown in Parliament over the Indo-US nuclear deal, some of its own MPs may go against it to secure their Muslim votebank.
Jul 14, 2008 ... With the Left digging in its heels, the UPA Government is worriedthat if it has a showdown in Parliament over the Indo-US nucleardeal, some of its own MPs may go against it to secure their Muslimvotebank. Voices Prime Minister Manmohan Singh is sulking. He has been ...
Political jamboree ; Bhopal has been the venue of a veritable political jamboree at the launch of the Hindi version of the leader of the Opposition and BJPS's prime ministerial candidate, L.K. Advani's, autobiography.
Jul 14, 2008; ... He may have announced his plans to contest the next parliamentaryelections from his pocket borough of Gandhinagar in Gujarat, butMadhya Pradesh is fast emerging as the favourite stopover in thepolitical itinerary of L.K. Advani. His Sankalp Yatra from Jabalpur in February was cut ...
Signposts ; President Pratibha Patil presented the B.C. Roy National Award for medicine to cardiologist Dr Naresh Trehan and endocrinologist Dr Anoop Misra.
Jul 14, 2008 ... Died: Kewal Krishan, former Punjab assembly speaker and financeminister. He represented the Mukerian Vidhan Sabha segment in thestate Assembly seven times. He was 85. Died: G.M. Banatwala, 74, Indian Union Muslim League presidentand the national face of the minority community. He ...
Vis-a-vis ; Samajwadi Party chief Mulayam Singh Yadav versus RJD chief Lalu Prasad Yadav.
Jul 14, 2008 ... Samajwadi Party chief Mulayam Singh ...
Fail marks ; ABVP is accusing Jakhar of dragging his feet for over a year on taking action against Kamalakar Singh, the vice-chancellor of a Madhya Pradesh Bhoj (Open) University.
Jul 14, 2008; ... President Pratibha Patil's visit to Madhya Pradesh has turnedinto an occasion for Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) tovoice its protest against Governor Balram Jakhar. ABVP is accusing Jakhar of dragging his feet for over a year ontaking action against Kamalakar Singh, the ...
Ticket to ride ; The West Bengal Government is planning to introduce insurance benefits for the passengers of the 2,000 long-distance state transport buses probably a subtle way to make bus travel look like a more palatable prospect.
Jul 14, 2008; ... The West Bengal Government is planning to introduce insurancebenefits for the passengers of the 2,000 long-distance statetransport buses probably a subtle way to make bus travel look likea more palatable prospect. The initial plan was to have passengers using the state ...
The pappu culture ; The not-so-young Gandhi, we are told, is part of a board that is conducting extensive interviews of young hopefuls. Gandhi junior is like the new breed of young men who have split several business empires .
Jul 14, 2008; ... Forgive me for laughing out loud but ever since I read that RahulGandhi is conducting a talent search for a new generation of full-timers in the Congress, I haven't quite been myself. The not-so-young Gandhi, we are told, is part of a board that isconducting extensive interviews ...
Thumping her iron fist ; Ever since Chief Minister Mayawati assumed office in May last year, she has clamped down on BSP MLAs and ministers who are accused of criminal acts.
Jul 14, 2008; ... It's a cleansing act that Chief Minister Mayawati is bent onpursuing, even against her own partymen. Ever since she assumedoffice in May last year, she has clamped down on BSP MLAs andministers who are accused of criminal acts. The latest to earn her ire is Bhagwan Sharma alias ...
Corner plot politics ; Facing eviction from bungalows they have lived in for decades following a Supreme Court order, smaller parties in search of a new home in Delhi could find a chic address hard to come by as the Congress splits the cake in its favour.
Jul 14, 2008; ... When it comes to splitting up the family silver, the nationspoliticians are beginning to resemble eternally fractious Indianfamilies. As the Government doles out plots to political parties for theconstruction of their future headquarters, some are turning greenwith envy as ...
Going for the kill ; The euphoria over the unilateral declaration of ceasefire by the most potent battalion of ULFA may be short-lived if the government and the pro-talk group fail to bring in more cadres to their fold.
Jul 14, 2008; ... Anil Haloi (name changed), who had joined the United LiberationFront of Assam (ULFA) in 1988, was a disillusioned rebel till lastmonth. He had been involved in kidnapping, murders, blasts and attackson security forces, all in the name of struggle for independence ....