It was a wintry night when a tiger invaded Salim’s house and hauled away his younger brother. It was an endless struggle of scars and paws but eventually, the man-eater won. Salim was shrouded with anguish forever. When I first met Salim… It was part of one my 2017 visits to a primary school…
Agriculture: Does a poor farmer get the help he needs?
Ours is primarily an agrarian economy, with much of rural India still practising agriculture as their main occupation. As cities continue to expand, devouring chunks of cultivable land, our poor farmers struggle to arrange for their daily bread. It is terrifyingly ironical that the one who puts food in our bowls prays for a grain…
This Christmas you can change a life with Shop To Give
For people like us in the 21st century, convenience is the new buzzword. We have Facebook to make new friends, Instagram to click aesthetic photos and the 280 characters of Twitter to air our opinions without any inhibition. This need for convenience has seeped into our bones so deeply that we want to do even…
Solar power as a lifestyle in rural India
Humans have a tendency to apply unnatural techniques to nature, destroy it and then employ technology once again to repair it. We have been circling in the loop for ages. Our ancestors never banked on coal and petroleum. They relied on the Sun. And guess what? That’s the solution we need. Instead of getting…
Cancer Prevention – Dodging the Big C of Cancer
We have all grown up dreading the word ‘cancer,’ for the way it shows itself up in our lives like a sudden ghost. And since most cases of cancer in India are detected at a rather mature stage, the bandwidth of successful recovery is quite narrow. This has earned cancer a bad reputation of being…
Are we addressing the needs of the elderly in India?
Aristophanes once referred to old age as a “second childhood”. This statement has stayed with mankind even after centuries of the writer’s passing away, probably because of the crisp truth it offers. The elderly, with their bodies beginning to give in to old age, indeed enter into a stage of second infancy. They need a…
Why Do We Need To Talk More About Mental Health?
India in its pursuit for a healthier society, has with time, done away with a lot of customs and traditions which were no longer serving its people. Our constitution strictly forbids all kinds of discrimination on the grounds of caste, creed, religion, and gender. More of our girl children are now receiving an education at…
Battle of the Buffet-Feasting to the Power of Giving
Who could have thought that entertainment and food can play major drivers in charitable works? Battle of the Buffet is one such annual fundraising event jointly organized by CIOSA, Chennai Mission, and United Way Chennai. It facilitates fundraising for the participating charities, subsequently helping them in expanding their supporter base through active networking. Since its…
Poverty in India-A Malady of Years
The history of India is replete with tales of over-pouring prosperity and brilliant riches. They tell us of how the Taj Mahal once stood embellished with precious stones and diamonds. We are told how the rich people fed their cattle dry fruits for scented meat. As we move forward into our study of India’s past,…
This businesswoman has a brilliant way to fight poverty
It isn’t uncommon for entrepreneurs to be philanthropists. They run some of the world’s largest charitable organisations. But it isn’t often that you find someone who sells their multi-million dollar business and sets up a nonprofit that works to eradicate poverty with the money. That’s the story of Christel DeHaan, the 76-year-old founder of Christel…