Lockdown: Online Classes – Let’s Plan, not Ban
In its wisdom, the state has recently banned all online teaching for classes 1-5. The state comes with honourable intentions. The arguments being made are on the grounds of equity, public health and learning. The equity argument is that online learning necessitates reliable access to digital devices, which not all children have. The health argument […]
Reimagining Abundance in Post COVID-19 India
As people return to life and work post the lockdown, some predictions point to a mad rush to do even more than before. Travel more, buy more, meet more people, eat out more — do more of more. The government too is expected to do more to restore economic growth and livelihoods. Much more is […]
It is Time to Rethink the way Humans Treat Animals
It is time to rethink how chickens are bred, treated and eaten, too. There is a whole new generation of people who care about where their food comes from, and how it is grown. On May 4 each year, since 2005, a non-profit in the United States (US) called United Poultry Concerns celebrates International Respect for […]
The World After Covid-19: Unless We Are Alert, The Pandemic Could Become The Last Nail In Individualism’s Coffin
For centuries, individualism or the notion that every human individual has intrinsic value has underlined ideas about societal organisation, the economy and justice. Recently, however, the primacy of the individual’s inalienable rights and freedoms has come under immense pressure. Individualism in the West originated from the Enlightenment. It believes in the moral worth of the […]
Covid-19: Securing the Present and the Future
This is the most serious crisis since World War II. Politicians must step up; voters must allow them to. Politicians are elected because they campaign in poetry, but voters don’t always account for the fact that elected representatives must govern in prose. That chasm between the promise and the delivery becomes more dangerous at times […]
The Unexplored Potential of Learning Beyond Schooling
The COVID-19 crisis should push us to re-imagine education in radical ways that we’ll be thankful for. At six, in grade 1, my daughter returned from school in a chirpy mood. “What did you study today?” I asked. She was puzzled. “I didn’t study anything,” she replied, “but I learnt a lot.” Education in the […]
Women’s Day: Rohini Nilekani says her 20th century-born grandmother was modern in best sense of the term
Born Godavari Ketkar, at the turn of the 20th century, she spent her childhood in the sylvan surroundings of the Gwalior palace, as her father was an ambassador to the maharaja’s court. She spoke of going to the little local school in deer carriages. The beautiful young Goda came to Belgaum at the age of […]
सवाल, पक्षियों की आखिर अहमियत क्या है?
चेतावनी… हाल ही में जारी स्टेट ऑफ इंडिया बर्ड्स 2020 रिपोर्ट का डेटा बेहद चौंकाने वाला है बसंत का मौसम है। मौसम पंछियों वाला। देश में भले आप कहीं भी रहते हों, घने जंगल से लेकर बियाबान रेगिस्तान या फिर गली-मोहल्लों वाले किसी शहर में। संभावना है कि सुबह आपकी नींद पक्षियों के चहचहाने से […]
आदिवासियों का कर्ज है हम सब पर, बंग दंपती उसका हिस्सा चुका रहे हैं
इस नए दशक की शुरुआत में खुशकिस्मती से मुझे एक प्राचीन इलाके में जाने का मौका मिला जो अपनी हालिया परेशानी से उबर रहा है। विदर्भ का गढ़चिरौली, भारत के सबसे पिछड़े आदिवासी जिलों में से एक है। वहां गोंंड आदिवासियों के वनक्षेत्र में देश के 8 करोड़ आदिवासियों की तरह ही गोंड लोगों का […]
The Joy of Staying With the Young
In the world of children’s books, 16 years is a long time, which is how old Pratham Books turned on January 1, 2020. Co-founded and funded by Rohini Nilekani, Pratham Books is a non-profit publisher focused on introducing children to the joy of reading. Nilekani has written 11 books for Pratham Books so far, out […]
