This article was first published by The Better India on October 17, 2016. Muzaffar Ansari, more popularly known as Kalle Bhai, is a man of many stories and mysteries. A Class 6 dropout, Kalle Bhai pursued his passion for history and heritage to become a tourist guide, an explorer and a man who can speak and…
This story was first published in The Better India on July 22, 2016. Shiva Kumar of Vaithikuppam in Puducherry is using digital literacy to help individuals living with HIV get access to a better life. Excited shouts of “Computer sir is here! Computer sir is here!” fill the air every afternoon at the Shanthi Bhavan HIV/AIDS…
This story was first published in The Better India on July 30, 2016. Yusuf Khan, now 34, first learnt to operate a PC at the age of 16. Today, technology is an integral part of his everyday life and helping him preserve his rich musical legacy for posterity. Hundreds of years ago, Khan’s ancestors roamed the…
Anita Devi is from Angara in District Ranchi of Jharkhand. She used to run a dhaba with her husband. As the couple tried to make ends meets, the husband took ill. Dauntless Anita not only took charge of running the Dhaba all by herself, but planned to expand it further. Today, she singl-ehandedly runs a…
Chanderiyaan, a project in Madhya Pradesh, is digitally empowering the weaver community of Chanderi in an effort to streamline the weaving process and provide sustainable livelihood options for the youth.
Wages from her 100 days of annual labour under the MGNREGA scheme is the only source of income for her small household. It’s just barely enough to feed the two of them.
Most of the villagers of Jakhnikhal in Tehri Garhwal district of Uttarakhand fall above the poverty line and belong to the general category. However, they don’t earn enough to be able to afford grains and other food items at market price.
This story by a DEF team member was first published by The Better India on February 16, 2016 The women of Tilonia are in love. And this love is for their newly acquired iPads. Strolling around the campus of Barefoot College in Tilonia village of Ajmer district in Rajasthan, you’ll come across several women walking…
Himanshu and Nitika are two studious siblings who hail from the Tipli Village of Tehri District. They stay with their father Kushal Singh, who is dependent on MNREGA for sustaining his family. The scheme provides a legal guarantee for one hundred days of employment in every financial year to adult members of any rural household…
This story by a DEF team member was first published in The Better India on March 27, 2016 Every morning at 7 am about 40,000-60,000 people in and around the village of Tilonia in Ajmer district of Rajasthan turn on their radio transistors and tune into 90.4 FM to listen to Norat Mal and Aarti…