Let's Ecoplore!

Women in Politics with special reference to Bhopal  Preface In the male dominated Indian society, women are expected to remain in the private arena of home, husband and children. Their participation in public affairs especially politics is objected by most of the male counterparts. Philosophers like Plato, Aristotle, Rousseau, John Locke, Thomas Hobbes and Hegel restrict women’s life to family and consider them unfit for political affairs. However, women are no less than men. They are equally competent and rather more mature and responsible. They participated with full zeal and fervor in the freedom struggle movement. The total number of women politicians in the Congress party before independence was much more than are present today in all parties put together. Politics has now become a hotbed of crooks and criminals. Participation of women in politics will be fruitful only if honest, accountable and educated women join this corrupt field and contribute in reforming it. With t...

The rustling leaves, the chirping birds and the whistling insects create a symphonic harmony in the lush green Indian Institute of Mass Communication. The eight acre campus is a house to about 200 species of plants & animals. IIMC encompasses numerous herbs, shrubs, creepers, crotons, cacti, ferns, medicinal and ornamental plants. The name of the institute and its logo has been carved out of Hedge plant. The peculiar feature of Amarpoi growing near Academic block is that its leaves can be sown to grow a new plant. Mango, Guava, Papaya, Blackberry, Mulberry, Orange, Plum and Bel draws the attention of monkeys who eat them before it ripens. Mint & coriander leaves make delicious chutneys. Ah…….mouthwatering! A spice tree named ‘Tejpatta’ grows near the Audio Visual block. For the beauty conscious girls, IIMC offers Alovera sown near the entrance gate. Rudraksh, Bel, Hibiscus and champa with mythological significance purify the ambience. Lotus garden is an important componen...

Cuttack: Bathroom soaps to Beauty kits, Kulfi walas to Kwality walls, Music to Museums, Needle to Nitting machines, Peanuts to Pizzas, Stone art to sand art, Thread to Trousers……….You just name it and you will get it at Bali yatra in Cuttack. The world’s largest fair is termed so because the Odiya word ‘bali’ means ‘sand’ and the entire amusement is organized on the sandbank of river Mahanadi. The gigantic seven day festival commences ever year on Kartik Purnima signifying the trade and commerce with the foreign land. Around 16000 stalls have been put up in a capacious area of 25Kms. Sellers from Rajasthan, Karnataka, Bihar, West Bengal, Maharastra and certain foreign nations like China and Nepal come here to sale their product. Also, visitors from different parts of the country witness this magnificent fest. Jyoti says, “I have come here from Patna especially to view the majestic fest and procure everything I want.” “About 8lakh people turn up everyday to have a glimpse of the ga...

Puri: Pitu travels from Lucknow to Puri to visit the majestic Jagannath Dham. As she reaches the spot, she gets stuck by reading ’Only Hindus are allowed’. Though, she being a Hindu was permitted to enter the temple but the discriminatory custom left her grief stricken. As she enters the holy premises, a Panda (Priest) insisted on acting as her guide in lieu of money which she half-heartedly accepted. Making her way through the crowd, she reaches the Garbh Griha (the heart of the temple where idols of Lord Jaganath, Balabhadra and Subhadra are enshrined), where the head priest chants slokas, blesses her and demands for Rs.500. On denial, she was accused of being ‘Dharm bhrast’. Disgruntled with the so-called ‘devotion’ of Pandas, Pitu departs with a heavy heart! Such gloomy experiences of pilgrims bring a bad name to the famous Jagannath Dham. Unlike Gurudwaras where people get free food (langar), here ‘prashad’ also has a price attached to it. The dismal situation depicts that Panda...

Cuttack: Puffed rice, tamarind chutney, chopped potato and onion, fried dal and sev, salt and garam masala-Mix all and the Bhel is ready! Isn’t it similar to mixing of diverse culture and forming a United India? Yes, Bali yatra resembles the ethnic diversity of Bharat. This intermixing can be observed at the World’s largest fair on the sandbank of river Mahanadi. A vendor from Gaya (Bihar) was selling Bhel Puri of Bombay (Maharastra) in the fiesta of Cuttack (Odisha). Sibu from Gaya chose to sell Bombay bhel and not any Bihari dish like Litti Chokha because ‘there are more bhel eaters than litti.’ Along with Bhel, he also sells Mathura cake and Mirchi Pakoda. He tells, “The demand for Mathura cake is reducing while that of Pakoda is rising. But Bhel remains all time favorite.”Sibu is happy selling Bhel puris as he earns a decent livelihood. He says. “I earn Rs.1000/day on an average. While On Sundays and holidays, the earning goes beyond Rs.1500,” he adds. So, if cultural mingl...

He Sells Sea Shells on the Sea Shore Puri: Waves bring shells with them, leaves them on the shore and goes back. Sellers collect these shells, sell them and earn their livelihood. The tradition goes on…… The vendors of Puri beach sell pearls, soft stone show pieces, shankh, coral and varieties of shell items like bangles, back clips, ear rings, toys etc. To attract more customers, vendors also sell plastic products like bangles, dolls, duplicate mobiles, toys etc. Sankar, a vendor tells that he earns more from the sale of plastic items as it is the world of duplication.Among the diverse shell objects, Shankh is sold the most. These shankhs are brought from Rameshwar in Tamil Nadu. However, the ordinary shells are picked up from fish nets, cleaned by nitric acid and are then carved into different designs and shapes. It’s noteworthy, ‘Had the sea not been there, How would the shells and their customers come?’ Nature has bestowed beautiful gifts which man must che...

At 5PM, a woman in burqah comes to purchase a golden purse with Zardozi work. The cost of the purse is Rs.500 but she bargained it for just Rs.250. The amount was not meeting the shopkeeper’s investment but still he was compelled to sell as it was his first sale throughout the day & he urgently needed money to pay the dues of his laborers. Such is the condition of a 350 years heritage shop selling exotic batuas. Bhopali batua is the prestige of Bhopal. It resembles the tradition & culture of the capital city. The craft is linked with Gond tribe who made exquisite ornaments from bones, ivory, wood & shell. The traditional skill later got the blend of Persian art under the patronage of Begums of Bhopal (women rulers who ruled Bhopal princely state for about 200 years). But, now this ancient craft is perishing due to dearth of customers. Sunil Parekh, the owner of a heritage batua selling shop in Bhopal tells that customers do not pay worthy prices for the ...

The lush green campus of Indian Institute of Mass Communication, Dhenkanal attracts all eyes. A loud ‘wow’ is expected from everyone who visits the campus. The rustle of leaves, the chirp of birds and the whistle of insects creates a symphony which is admired by all. The eight acre campus is a house to 200 species of plants & animals. The hut shaped building has been constructed on the slope of Paniohala(Hanging water) hill which is densely covered by Teak trees. The height of the roofs has been kept high to cozy the students from extreme heat. The entire construction has been done in a sloping manner keeping into consideration environmental concerns i.e. to prevent soil erosion & conserve rain water. Heavy iron content makes the water taste sweet. In the world which is facing scarcity of freshwater, it is noteworthy that the total water demand of IIMC is met by a single tube well. This is an outcome of roof water & ground water harvesting...

Its a request to all young educated youths to choose politics as a career & contribute in making it a profession than a dynastic field to be active during leisure time. Now, politics is a field where people join when they have a settled life style,extra money to invest & desire to quadruple their wealth through corrupt means. But, I aspire to make it a profession which a common educated youth would dream to join not to make money but actually to serve people.They shouldn't boast like most of the present day politicians do of acting & giving long public speeches of serving people but actually doing nothing at the grass root level. Its a request to youths that whosoever subscribe to my idea/opinion can please reply and join the mission.I know the number of such people is very few but even those few of us can make a difference. It's easy to criticize a particular thing specially politics but its very difficult to bring a change into it.