We think the supply of water is unlimited. If surface water is not available, we will tap underground resources. But given the fast depletion of underground water and its pollution by industrial and agricultural chemicals, we are not left with much choice, warns Nitya Jacob. Water comes in three forms usable to human life. Surface water, comprising rivers and lakes. Rainwater from the skies, and groundwater from under the earth’s surface. For most part, human civilisation has depended on surface and groundwater for its survival, and rainwater for agriculture. The three sources are therefore closely linked – rainwater is the…
Author: oiop
Never have been the 3Rs – Reduce, Reuse and Recycle, been as critically significant as today. Living within planetary boundaries is the most promising strategy for ensuring a healthy future. Avani Jain talks about pollution control, green footprints, sustainability and the 3Rs which are necessary to help build a green future. The well-being of humanity, environment and functioning of the economy, ultimately depends upon the responsible management of the natural resources of the planet. However, these days, people are consuming far more natural resources than what the planet can sustainably provide. In fact, many of the Earth’s ecosystems are nearing…
India interprets pollution in different ways. From lead in noodles to cleaning up the Ganga, we have a different take on pollution, writes V. Gangadhar. There is absolutely no truth in the widespread belief that India is among the most polluted nations in the world. All kinds of bizarre statistics are forwarded to substantiate this view. Our air is impure, our water is impure, our food is impure. We have failed the ultimate test in pollution, our Maggi noodles is impure, adulterated and polluted. The ban was announced by government agencies. That is a major problem. How can anyone trust…
Come September, the Kaas plateau, Maharashtra’s very own ‘Valley of Flowers’ explodes into a riot of colours with countless wild flowers blooming on the plateau and along the hill slopes. The plateau, 27km from Satara, has a unique topography. Nestled in the Sahyadri hills, the region with laterite soil is colourful only for a couple of months in late monsoon. Thereafter the land becomes completely barren. But when Kaas is in full bloom, Mother Nature is at her best. Amazingly, it wears a different colour every week with the variety of flowers in bloom changing week to week. The sunny…
The mind is just society’s garbage bin, says Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev of the Isha Foundation. But if you could pick and choose from it what you want, then it doesn’t matter how full or how filthy the bin is. The mind doesn’t need to be controlled. On the contrary, you have to be liberated from the mind, he says. What you call as your mind is just an accumulation that you have gathered. Please see, your mind is just society’s garbage bin. Everyone who passes your way will throw some garbage into your head and go. You really have no…
We dump everything from raw sewage to untreated industrial effluents into our rivers despite investing heavily in treatment plants, which in most cases are also dysfunctional. Should we wait till all our rivers are reduced to toxic sludges before we take urgent action? asks a concerned Tirtho Banerjee. TWhen a recent Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) report revealed that the number of polluted rivers in India has gone up from 121 to 275 in the last five years, there were the customary knee-jerk reactions from the civil society groups and eco activists. The startling survey was quoted in a series…
This is a lovely recipe for a rainy afternoon or night. The use of dal and the near absence of oil makes it also a dieter’s dream come true! Ingredients One large cup toor dal One quarter cup kabuli chana soaked overnight 100 gms suran (yam) One brinjal chopped in 4 pieces One carrot cut in big chunks 15 cluster beans (guvaar) 7-8 lady fingers Two potatoes cut into long pieces 3 drumsticks 10- 12 Lonavla kokum Two tablespoon tamarind paste One tablespoon jaggery For seasoning A few sprigs of curry leaves 5 green chillies cut length wise 5 big…
Some restaurants have dead atmosphere, while here is a restaurant that well, literally, shares space with the dead! This Indian restaurant owner claims business has flourished since opening his eatery at the site of an old cemetery! Rather than ripping out the graves to make way for his restaurant, owner Krishnan Kutti has chosen to preserve the coffins and place tables around them at the ironically-named New Lucky Restaurant in Ahmadabad. The coffins are the remnants of a Muslim cemetery and the cafe has now become a popular hang-out for both the young and the old. Says Kutti: “The graveyard…
There were days when Indian Railways was a male dominated play field with testosterone levels hitting the roof and trains chug chugging pushed by sheer grit and determination of the men at work. Women were as non-existent as patience in the customers and even the available few were happy to be booking clerks and office clerks. Other than those clerical cadres, you could find them nowhere, as they were supposed to be so good in accounting- they can count 99+2=102 in two seconds and they can put a note in a file that says- ‘submitted for your orders please’ in…
In recent times, surfing has become the raison d’etre for many tourists visiting places like Mahabalipuram in Tamil Nadu. They come, they surf and they stay on, says Liz Thottan, who herself gave up an urban lifestyle to devote time to surfing and running her homestay in Mahabalipuram. She writes about the magnetic attraction this town holds for her and hundreds of other tourists-turned-locals. Today I can proudly say, I am living my dream. The dream of freedom, free spirit, and a free life. I chose what to do, how to live and where to live, because I loved it,…