Kochi has always held a place close to my heart. Although I don’t hail from there, my time there as a student has been very special. The welcoming locals and the fascinating cultural legacy only added to Kochi’s charm for me.

Bestowed with the sobriquet, the Queen of the Arabian Sea, Kochi is perhaps the best example of how cultural exchanges leave a long-lasting trace in India which are then seamlessly interwoven into the local cultural fabric. But that is a topic for another time.

Besides its historical significance and many tourist attractions, one aspect that makes Kochi truly unique is its food culture.

Yes, the fixation with seafood is real and quite obsessive. There is a lot more to this city’s gastronomic trails that can only be uncovered if you trudged through the streets and lanes like a foodie with a mission.

Well, we made that a little bit easier for you by listing some of the must-try and mouthwatering delicacies from Kochi that will blow your mind with their blast of exquisite flavours.

1. Puttu Kadala

For a Malayali, nothing is more comforting than a piping hot plate of Puttu and Kadala curry for breakfast. A quintessential dish in almost every household in Kerala, Puttu is a preparation of ground rice, layered with coconut shavings (and sometimes banana), and then steamed; while Kadala curry comprises kala chana or black chickpeas cooked in roasted coconut gravy.

Coming to the rescue of those living away from home, restaurants and street vendors across Kochi serve this humble dish in the mornings. This dish has equally become popular among tourists!

2. Pazham Pori and Beef curry

While those who have been to Kerala or have Malayali friends, it is impossible not to have heard of Pazham pori. An equivalent of bhajji, except that this one is made using ripe Nendran bananas, Pazham pori is perhaps the most loved snack in the state, going best with a hot cup of evening tea.

In Kochi, you’ll find the fritter being served with an accompaniment that even Malayalis across the state find a bit intriguing—Beef curry!

Not only is this combination unusual, but it is also found only in a particular street shop named Sri Muruga Café. That is if you’re able to make your way through the crowds lined up to get their share.

3. Thattu Dosa

Not your paper-thin variant or the thicker version doused in ghee with masala filling, Thattu dosa is rather thick. But its humility is perhaps what makes it a street favourite—that accompanied with simple chammanthi (chutney) will fill your stomach as well as your heart.

Taking over as a street food delicacy in last few years, you’ll find thattu dosas across pushcarts, street shops and even restaurants in Kochi at any time of day.

4. Kulukki Sarbath

Folks in Kochi can proudly declare that Kulukki Sarbath is their gift to the world. A local lemonade with a twist, the sarbath is filled with khus-khus seeds, served after being vigorously shaken by the seller—often with elaborate gesticulations. In fact, the word “kulukki” in Malayalam means “shaking”.

5. Kappa Boti

A dish that is originally quite local to Thrissur, the delectable combination of Kappa (mashed tapioca) and Boti (goat’s gizzards) is one that will sweep most non-vegetarians off their feet. The dish is so loved in Kochi that you’ll find it in most restaurants in the city.

6. Ellum Kappayum

It is strange to find a delicacy that has multiple monikers ranging from Ellum kappayum, Kappa biriyani, and even Asiad! Malayalis love kappa, which by now you’d have learned is tapioca; this dish comprises the unassuming tuber along with yet another food item that folks from God’s Own Country can’t live without—Beef.

So technically, Ellum Kappayum is made from tapioca and beef rib bones, which is ‘ellu’ in Malayalam. It is perhaps the only biriyani in the world that is not prepared with rice! This dish is much sought after in Kochi and you must definitely try it!

7. Parotta and Beef Fry

Alright, this one is a straight winner. There are perhaps a few Malayalis in the world who can resist the lure of Parotta and Beef Fry.

Just the way people joke about Butter Chicken being the national bird of Punjab, it wouldn’t be wrong to say that the coastal state is smitten with this quintessentially Malayali dish that can easily give any other fast food a tough run for its money.

And such is the love and demand for this dish that you don’t need to look for it at all. So, when in Kochi, indulge in a sumptuous and mouth-watering meal of Parotta and Beef fry!

8. Meen Molagita Curry

Now this one is for seafood lovers. A hyper-local delicacy that you won’t find elsewhere in the world, Meen Molagita curry translates to a fish curry doused in chillies.

In reality, it comprises smoked freshwater fish with chillies and coconut milk. People head to Kochi sometimes for the sole purpose of trying out this dish—such is its flavourful charm.

9. Erachi Pidi

So ‘Erachi’ in Malayalam is meat, which can vary from mutton to beef, while ‘pidi’ is a savoury version of rice dumplings from the Malabar region. Together, Erachi Pidi is a delicacy where rice dumplings are dunked in roasted coconut gravy that is high on spice and meat.

Kochi has a variation–muthiya–made by the Kutchi Muslims. High on demand during Eid and a staple for Iftar, this dish is much loved in Kochi that you can have as breakfast, lunch or even dinner!

10. Beef Vindaloo

A gift of the Portuguese, Vindaloo is a delectable preparation synonymous with the Goan cuisine than it is with the Kerala spread. But the Beef variation is quite popular with its aromatic and tangy flavours that are irresistible to miss after one has tasted it before.

You can find this dish across most restaurants and street shops.

11. Naadan Biriyani

Speaking about best delicacies in Kochi, how can one miss Biriyani—the naadan, or traditional one.

While countless outlets in the city will answer all your Biriyani cravings, we have this quaint yet iconic eatery named Kayees Rahmathulla Hotel in Mattancherry, whose simple, wood-fired preparation, is one that you mustn’t miss.

12. Fish Molly

Yet another classic delicacy from Kochi, Fish Molly or fish molee, enjoys quite a fan following across the world. Always on demand by tourists, the versatility of this dish is in its mild flavours, unlike most fish curries in Kerala that are high on spice.

With subtle hints of green chillies and black peppers that are smoothly overpowered by the creamy texture of coconut milk, the fish is cooked to perfection and tastes divine with appam. Any restaurant in Kochi will provide you with this epic delicacy—so do try it out!

13. Breudher Bread

One of the best kept local secrets, the Breudher Bread is a celebrated teatime snack whose origins go back to when trade and cultural exchanges occurred between the Dutch and the coastal state. Very few bakeries continue to serve this bread/cake (the confusion remains owing to its sweet, rich and buttery flavour!) with its authentic touch intact!

A small joint named Quality Bakery at Pattalam Junction in Fort Kochi will give you the best experience of the past and present, wrapped in a bread!

14. Kurukku Kalan

A vegetarian dish that is truly local to Kochi, Kurukku Kalan is made of thick curd and toasted raw banana or yam. An integral part of every Sadhya, this curry can be consumed with hot rice. The expertise with which the curd is infused with a tempered mix of spices and curry leaves makes this a must-try for vegetarians and vegans who’d like to indulge in the local meat-free delicacies.

15. Appam and Stew

If you were wondering why didn’t I mention this earlier, it’s because Appam and stew are not just popular in Kerala but across the country as well. Like Puttu and Kadala, this simple preparation is a household staple across the state, where the stew has both vegetarian and non-vegetarian variations.

Cooked in coconut milk and laced with ground black pepper, the vegetable/chicken/mutton stew leaves behind an unforgettable taste that you must definitely try with Appam. And in Kochi, you can find these at every eating joint!

(Edited by Shruti Singhal)

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Sister Lizzy Chakkalakkal is the principal of Our Lady’s Convent Girls Higher Secondary School in Thoppumpady, Kerala.

Five years ago, she discovered that one of her students was homeless. This prompted her and some of the students to take up the ‘House Challenge Project,’ through which they raised money and constructed a house for the child and her family.

An inspired Sister Lizzy decided to continue with the initiative. Since then, several homes—99 to be exact—have been constructed for the poor and homeless by the House Challenge Project for free.

The money for construction is raised through contributions from students, parents, teachers as well as anyone who is willing to donate.

Once the required amount is collected, the school facilitates the construction by bringing in workers and other parties till the time the house is ready for its occupants.

“When we think of service for the society and particularly, the homeless, most of us assume that all they need is food and clothes. While these are indeed basic necessities, a roof over one’s head is equally important. Through these homes, we are providing them security but more than that, the hope and will to build a better life,” says Sister Lizzy to The Better India.

In a week from now, the House Challenge project will hit a significant landmark—they will finish constructing their 100th house and hand over its keys to a homeless family from Chellanam. The kids are students at the school.

“While the primary objective of this initiative was to end homelessness in Kochi, I also wanted to inculcate a culture of sharing in the students. And what could be a better way to teach students about the joy of giving than to involve them in the process,” says Sister Lizzy.

Students, teachers as well as the management staff of the school have played a significant role in contributing money for the homes that have been constructed.

Explaining this further, Sister Lily says, “During celebratory occasions like their birthdays, these children have voluntarily come forward to donate money, and that truly helped this initiative gain momentum. Initially, only students and staff were helping to raise funds, but, as word spread, people from all walks of life joined in.”

The project is not limited to the families of students from the school; it has also built homes for the differently-abled and widowed mothers.

“In today’s date and time, constructing a simple house doesn’t amount to much, and our efforts have proven that. By teaching children, we are striving to take forward the message that together, we can end homelessness,” shares Sister Lizzy.

The school takes community engagement very seriously.

Last year when floods ravaged the state, it adopted close to 150 families to help them get back on their feet. Additionally, a total of 12 fully-constructed houses were handed over to families from Kuttanad as well as flood-hit villages from Ernakulam district.

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To know more about the House Challenge Project or track their progress, you can follow Sister Lizzy on Facebook here.

(Edited by Gayatri Mishra)

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“To understand just how much plastic has impacted our ecosystem, take a shovel and dig a five-foot-deep hole. You will find pieces of plastic bags embedded in the mud,” says Mohan Kumar S, a resident of Kollam, Kerala.

Mohan is at the helm of driving an anti-plastic revolution in Thiruvananthapuram, where he mans an outlet of the Kerala State Cashew Development Corporation and the Kerala State Cashew Workers Apex Industrial Cooperative Society (CAPEX).

So, what exactly is he doing to curb the plastic menace? Well, he has completely phased out plastic bags from his store and only uses cloth bags!

These are not just any regular cloth bags, but ones that Mohan’s wife, R Sreelekha stiches using old sarees and discarded material from tailoring shops. In fact, she learnt to sew only so that she could make the bags.

“The fact that one could find plastic bags even in the mud disturbed me, and I wanted to switch to an environment-friendly solution,” he says, adding that he started this initiative two years ago.

Mohan’s initial plan to purchase regular cloth bags proved to be quite expensive. So he looked around, found a nearby tailoring shop, and decided to fashion them from discarded bits of cloth.

Last year, Kerala was affected by severe floods, and that was when Mohan thought of scaling up the production of the cloth bags.

“There was a collection centre in front of the VJT Hall where mounds of clothes arrived in the form of relief materials. There were a lot of old sarees, and we didn’t want to send these to the affected people. Instead of throwing or burning them, I thought I’d make bags from the sarees and they were later sold at the collection centre. People liked the idea, which led me to wonder if this could become a statewide initiative,” Mohan adds.

He then set out to research plastic bag usage across the state. “In any household, roughly about 10-15 plastic bags are used in a month and then, they are thrown out. There are about 65 lakh families across the state, so the rough estimate is that 6.5 crore plastic bags are used in a month,” Mohan shares.

Mohan came up with the idea of reaching out to every household and requesting them to donate an old saree or bed sheet for a paltry sum of ₹100, which would then be returned to them as ten cloth bags.

“The uneasy feeling that people might have while using bags made of someone else’s old clothes is also resolved here. Even with maximum wear and tear, these bags can easily last for three months, cutting short the usage of about 19.5 carry bags at every home,” Mohan explains.

With the aim to make this initiative a reality, he even sent a proposal about it to the CM’s office a few months ago, and it is currently under consideration.

Now, Mohan plans to make this a movement that can generate income as well.

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“The aftermath of the Ockhi cyclone left close to 350 families in a state that they have still not recovered entirely from. What I have in mind is to bring these families on board, so that they can stitch the bags and earn a livelihood of ₹15,000. It does two important things, at once—protecting the environment from the onslaught of plastic and providing livelihood to unemployed people. About 22 families have agreed to the idea as well. This is a part of the new proposal that I have made to CMO, and hopefully, it’ll be put into action soon,” Mohan concludes.

You can reach out to Mohan Kumar for any additional information at 9447031291.

(Edited by Gayatri Mishra)

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Between 1990-1997, a fairly high number of cancer cases were documented across the Karunagappally taluk in Kollam district of Kerala.

While there were many theories about the cause, the popular opinion was that the prolonged exposure to high natural radiation from the mineral reserves along the Chavara-Neendakara coast was to blame. However, there was no conclusive evidence of the same.

Two decades later, Karunagappally was struggling to shake off the cancer label, and this confounded a group of upper primary school students from Kulasekharapuram, a gram panchayat in the taluk.

During a science exhibition, they reached out to Binesh Vijayarajan, the Panchayat Agricultural Officer.

“It was in 2013, when about ten schoolgoing children, questioned me about the unfortunate label and they wanted to know if we could do anything to change it. At that point, I didn’t know what to say, but I didn’t want to disappoint these young minds either,” he says to The Better India.

Binesh was aware of the situation, but the question by the children made him ponder.

“I asked them to make a list of 100 houses in the vicinity and prepare a questionnaire for the residents. It included questions about their food habits, medical concerns and most importantly, where they were sourcing their food from. The data collected was an eyeopener. None of the households were growing their food; they were purchasing vegetables and fruits from local markets. These were usually sourced from Tamil Nadu and were heavily laced with pesticides,” he explains.

Binesh wanted to understand the extent to which the pesticides had penetrated the produce.

“We then visited the local markets early in the morning, when a fresh load of produce had just been delivered and purchased half a kilo of the most commonly consumed vegetables like tomatoes, ladies’ fingers and chillies. We took the produce to the Kerala Agricultural University (KAU) where we were helped by Biju Mathews, an expert in pesticide studies, and found that the amount of pesticides in the vegetables was 200 per cent higher than the permissible limit. It was shocking,” remembers Binesh.

He discussed the situation with the Panchayat committee, and they offered him their full support to come up with a solution.

“We began with suspending the license of the five main pesticide dealers in the area. The second part of the plan was to introduce organic farming to every single household. We felt it was necessary to make the citizens aware of the poisons they were unknowingly consuming,” says Binesh.

The change began in January 2014. Coincidentally, the UN also declared the year as the International Year of Family Farming (IYFF).

“To emphasise that the produce grown in the area would be ‘100 per cent pesticide free,’ boards stating the same were placed across the Panchayat. We also thought of approaching the residents, but before that, we wanted them to understand the harmful effects of pesticides and chemical fertilisers. At the time, there were roughly about 13,000 families in the area, and we supplied each one of them with tomato, brinjal, cowpea, chilli and ladies’ finger seedlings, along with 1.5 kg of organic manure,” Binesh says.

But the fact that these people would not persist in their efforts couldn’t be ruled out.

“So, we decided to form squads in every ward—23 in total—which would monitor the progress of the farming done at homes in their jurisdiction and offer any form of aid or assistance if needed. We brought street theatre groups on board, organised meetings and gram panchayat get-togethers, just to drive home the message,” Binesh adds.

Their motto became ‘Food Safety, Safe Food Production, and Sustainable Development.’

Because the region is inherently fertile, the people reaped a bumper harvest and this motivated them to grow local tuber crops like kappa (tapioca), chena (elephant foot yam), chembu (colocasia), kachil (greater yam) and nana kizhangu (lesser yam). They also started cultivating ginger and turmeric in 2015.

“We realised that our hard work had paid off, when people began to tell us there was no greater joy in consuming the food that was the result of their own blood and sweat,” Binesh proudly adds.

Binesh’s idea coupled with Panchayat committee’s support and community effort resulted in a successful organic revolution in Kulasekharapuram, and the state government has proclaimed it as a benchmark for the rest to follow.

In fact, Kulasekharapuram has bagged the award for ‘Best Organic Panchayat in the State’ three years in a row (2014- 2017).

Binesh mentions that the residents adopted some innovative farming practices including setting up rain shelters to ensure vegetable production through unfavourable seasons to the organic management of a whitefly outbreak across coconut groves. They also embraced organic waste management methods.

Here, we would like to mention some of Binesh’s remarkable projects that are truly worthy of appreciation.

The first one is the organic upland paddy production initiative that has helped people pursue small-scale paddy cultivation under coconut groves since 2013.

“In Kerala, we are blessed with a brief spell of rainfall before monsoon every year, which is known as ‘summer shower.’ While it is not enough to carry forward fully-fledged production, I thought of devising a way that would utilise this resource for the cultivation of paddy. Following the shower in the first half of May, we prepare the land and sow the seeds, that are then grown under the shade of coconut palms and receive necessary moisture collected in the fronds. People have been able to successfully harvest paddy by August—in 120 days. This has been one of our most successful initiatives,” proudly adds Binesh.

He also conceptualised an innovative practice under which even the poorest of families can cultivate paddy and grow their own rice by making ring-like grooves around a coconut palm.

“Our agenda was to help every family in Kulasekharapuram to grow enough rice that they could consume on Onam, our harvest festival. With paddy sown in 8 ring-shaped grooves, each one foot apart around the palm, a family can harvest close to 8 kg of paddy, which then trickles down to 4 kg of rice. More than enough for any family to have their fill during Onam,” he says.

What is more, Binesh observed that through this practice, not only did one successfully harvest paddy from the frond moisture, even the yield of the palms had considerably improved. “We even found that the groundwater table in the area had become even more enriched,” he adds.

The third initiative was the launch of value-added products under the brand name, OCTTA‘K’— an acronym made from the first letter of seven Panchayats under the block—namely Oachira, Clappana, Thodiyoor, Thazava, Alappad, and Kulasekharapuram. This was started to help the sesame farmers in the Oachira block.

“The Onattukara region is known for its sesame production, but over the years, the yield had fallen, and the returns were poor, and this had a severe effect on the farmers. I came up with the idea to use the produce to prepare value-added products like gingelly oil. It has great demand across the state,” he explains.

The Oachira Farmers Extension Organisation (OFEO) was formed with help from the farmers, and then with the support of the Panchayat Committee, they procured a plot of land measuring 35-cents, a building for processing, and machinery worth Rs 25 lakhs.

“As sesame is a seasonal crop, we also launched virgin coconut oil from Adinadu that would sustain the farmers during the off-season. There has been an almost multifold increase in the revenue of the farmers,” Binesh mentions.

In addition to all this, the people of Kulasekharapuram Panchayath now have a mini processing unit/rice mill, thanks to Binesh’s efforts.

“Since, most families grow paddy and chillies as well as spices like turmeric and coriander on their land, getting these ground emerged as a challenge. For these people had to carry the produce to the nearest town or even city. By establishing this mill, they can get anything ground ranging from rice to spices and that too at a nominal price of Rs 6 per kg,” he concludes.

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A native of Karunagappally, Binesh modestly mentions that his efforts have received statewide as well as national recognition.

“But that is alright. The knowledge that our children eat healthy, pesticide-free food and our farmers can sustain their livelihoods without causing any further damage to the environment is the best award I could ever receive,” he concludes.

(Edited by Gayatri Mishra)

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Birthdays are important, if not for all but at least for a majority. We love to be pampered on this day and expect a shower of gifts. Dr. Shinu Syamalan too celebrates her birthday—2nd of March—with the people close to her.

Last year, however, she decided to do things a bit differently. She told her husband Dr. KK Rahul that she wanted to help someone in need.

Rahul had been working as the medical officer at a Primary Health Centre in Moukode, Kasargod in Kerala at the time. Every day, on his way to work, he would see a small group of families in Kadayakara colony living under makeshift tents made of plastic and tarpaulin. The moment Syamalan informed her husband of her wish, he promptly told her about the plight of those families. Her husband’s suggestion and the way she acted upon them, soon turned the conscientious doctor into a social worker.

Upon reaching the colony, Syamalan found that the people were living in miserable conditions. Most of them were daily wage labourers and lived hand-to-mouth. She also observed the lack of clean and functional toilets.

This, Syamalan avowed, to change.

“The lands they [the people in Kadayakara colony] live on are owned by their fathers and grandfathers who have long passed. It makes it legally difficult for them to build permanent buildings. Add to that the fact that the community members don’t have ration cards or death certificates of their forefathers and they cannot legally transfer the land to their name. But what really shocked me was the fact that they did not have toilets—one of the most basic necessities!” said Syamalan in conversation with The Better India (TBI).

Though she did not have enough money to fund toilets for each of the families, she did not let that detail deter her. Right after interacting with the community and understanding their needs, Syamalan reached out to her friends and followers on social media for help.

A passionate dancer, writer, and poet, Syamalan had gathered quite a fan base on Facebook. Forty-three thousand people follow her posts on literature as well as health care.

Speaking to The New India Express, she says, “When I wrote on Kadayakara, many of my friends wanted to chip in to help the residents. People from around the world sent in money. I got contributions ranging from Rs 100 to Rs 10,000.”

Within a few days, she had collected over Rs 40,000. Just enough to build three toilets.

“I hired the masons from the colony itself,” she tells TBI. “That way, they could earn from the cause, and I did not need to hire a contractor, which would have cost me an additional Rs 5000 per toilet,” adds Syamalan.

She had aimed at one toilet per family, but her husband’s transfer to Thrissur, in August 2018, restricted Syamalan’s efforts to the three toilets she helped build.

Still, a change of location did not stop her from continuing with her work for social causes.

Just as the family of three–Dr. Syamalan, Dr. KK Rahul and their three-year-old daughter shifted to Thrissur, devastating floods ravaged Kerala. Even before they had settled down in the new house, the doctor duo started shuttling between refugee shelters, providing free medical check-ups and consultation to the flood victims.

Syamalan visited hundreds of patients during the Kerala floods. And she took her daughter along on these visits. She wanted to sensitize her daughter about the problems people face and how even the smallest of acts can go a long way to help them.

For about two months, the couple did everything in their capacity to ensure that each patient they attended got the best of their services.

When they finally settled down in Thrissur, Syamalan started an NGO called ‘Nizhal’ to take her work forward. Like in the case of Kadayakara, she seeks help from her social media friends and followers to fund her initiatives.

“Most of my friends are very happy to help me in the causes. It doesn’t matter if they contribute one rupee or a thousand. Since I have over 48,000 followers on Facebook, if every one of them contributes just one rupee, I have enough funds to change a person’s life!”

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Even after the floods had receded, there was a lot to be done in terms of health care. Syamalan visited as many gram-panchayats as she could, speaking to the authorities and explaining to them the importance of chlorination of water.

Recently, she crowd-funded sewing machines for the women who worked in tailor shops in Thrissur. Since the women would only earn a portion of what the owner charged their clients, Syamalan provided them with sewing machines to improve their earning.

Syamalan now plans to take her education further to equip herself with the knowledge to help people better.

She hopes to save enough money to complete another post-graduation course soon. “That way, I will be able to help people on a more professional level.” Though she got her MBBS degree from China in 2012, the 29-year-old spent a year doing house job in Trivandrum and Thrissur in Kerala. During this time she met a lot of underprivileged people who could not afford even basic medical services. Perhaps this was what inspired her to serve the people in any way she can.

“Some of my patients cannot afford to pay even Rs 100 as consultation fee and so, I charge them nothing. For others, who insist that I take some money, I charge Rs 10,” says Syamalan.

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“My husband currently works in a leprosy hospital and always supports my causes. That’s all I need,” she smiles.

A true inspiration, Syamalan is showing how social media can be used to do something good if we so want it. Whether by spreading awareness about the problems faced by marginalised communities or crowd-funding for essential amenities, she shows how it takes just one post and dedication to change the life of hundreds of individuals!

If you wish to help the doctor in her cause, you can follow her page by clicking on the link here. Most of her posts are in Malayalam, and if you don’t speak the language, you can message here on her profile. She will be happy to hear from you.

(Edited by Saiqua Sultan)

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“We see them all the time, like faded portraits. But often we take note only when they intrude into our neat world. We hurry up, trying not to steal a backward glance, while they continue their journeys, timeless and ubiquitous…”

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In a country where mental health conditions cost over $1 trillion to the Indian economy (second only to cardiovascular diseases at $2.17 trillion), how unfortunate it is that they are largely ignored or hushed up. Mental healthcare centres may be spreading in the country, but the majority is saturated in urban areas.

66 per cent of the Indian population lives in the villages, and with over 13 per cent of all the people in India battling some form of mental illness, the country is doing a disservice to its citizens by letting a large portion of them suffer in silence.

Dr Manoj Kumar, a psychiatrist based in Kerala is on a mission to change this across the State.

About ten years ago, he left his psychiatric practice in the UK and flew back to India to take care of the mental health of the rural population here.

Speaking to The Better India about his years in India, Kumar says, “Kerala has a history of getting involved in social issues. I was a psychiatrist in the UK for about 30 years when I decided to come back to my roots and get involved with the community here. I could see that the governments are not doing enough to take care of mental illnesses and realised that a family-like model needs to be adopted to bring about a change.”

How the model operates

To aid his vision, Kumar founded the Mental Health Action Trust (MHAT) in 2008 in Kozhikode—an organisation that works on a decentralised model to provide mental health care to the rural populace. The first step, he believes, is to take the awareness about mental health beyond medical professionals and expand it into the communities. And so, the more than 1000 volunteers at MHAT become the first point of contact between the people and the organisation.

“These volunteers are homemakers, retired professionals and others who can spare time for the patients. Whether it’s a family member who has a high fever or some other minor issue, people contact these volunteers first. For the patients, it is a support system that is available at any time of the day, for any issue they face. For the volunteers, it is the first step of training,” Kumar explains.

The volunteers analyse the problem, and depending upon how serious it is, the problem is either solved at the volunteer stage or passed over to the trained professionals. The 1000 volunteers are spread across 55 centres in the districts of Malappuram, Wayanad, Kozhikode, Palakkad, Thrissur and Alleppey in Kerala.

As each centre is located in a village, those among the volunteers who wish to become Community Mental Health Workers (CMHW) are trained more intensely by professionals. Dr Kumar told us that about 100 people work as CMHW which is less than the number of volunteers. A level above them are psychologists who have educational qualifications to take up therapy and counselling sessions but can’t prescribe medicines.

On the very top of the pyramid are medical professionals like Dr Kumar.

How technology is bringing people together

With a decentralised model like this, it is essential to deal with the mental health issues at different levels. But at the same time, medically trained psychiatrists like Kumar need to scrutinise the patients and their disorders before directing them to the volunteers or psychologists. And so, technology plays a crucial part in the functioning of MHAT.

With Apps like WhatsApp, Skype, Google Hangouts and other video-callings sources at their service, Dr Kumar can interview his patients online and then decides whether she or he needs medical treatment or therapy or both.

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“We save all the details of the patients in an electronic database,” Kumar tells us adding, “Mental healthcare resources need to be free. Here’s where technology helps us a lot. I can attend to over 20 patients every day with the help of this model and can analyse which of them need my expertise urgently and who counselling can help.”

While Kumar does not cash in a salary in MHAT, the community health workers and psychologists do. The organisation depends on individual contributions to fund the salaries and other finances required for the treatment. For the patients, the treatment is completely free of cost. If you wish to contribute, then you can find the contact details of MHAT below.

The stigma surrounding mental illness

“We usually deal with severe mental disorders where families have to compromise in terms of having someone attend to the patient at all times, and invest a lot of their savings in their medicines. These disorders include Schizophrenia, severe depression, dementia, bipolar disorder, anxiety and intellectual disorders. At any given day, we tend to about 2500 patients at MHAT,” shares Dr Kumar.

We also asked him about the stigma around mental illnesses and their approach toward the families of the patients.

Dr Kumars said that poor treatment stigmatise mental illnesses.

You may also like: Overcoming Loneliness & Abuse, Kolkata Lady Helps 3500 Battle Depression.

“There was a lot of stigma around HIV and AIDS too. The topic was never spoken about in public because there was no known treatment for it. People, quite understandably, are afraid of that which cannot be contested. But as we start finding solutions, even for mental illnesses, the stigma around it will reduce. Our model has been working successfully with the patients that we work with, and so we don’t have to deal with stigma so much,” he said.

Over the past few years, Dr Kumar and his wonderful team have been proud to share many success stories. Whether it is a villager who would wander around a village, begging for food or more severe cases like that of schizophrenia, the team has brought mental healthcare to the doorsteps of several Kerala villages.

With such a decentralised model, Dr Kumar is confident about reaching more people in due course of time. You can get in touch with them by clicking the link here. Your contribution can help secure the healthcare of Kerala’s rural areas.

(Edited by Saiqua Sultan)

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In November 1999, a group of high school science teachers in Guruvayur, Kerala, decided to come together to raise awareness on environment conservation among students and more importantly, local communities.

Their need to do so, arose from the fact that the nearby beach of Chavakkad was the nesting home for Olive Ridley turtles, an endangered species.

Christened ‘Habitat,’ the group started with four teachers, a photographer and a student, who would go on walks along the beach to safeguard the eggs laid by the nesting turtles.

“At that point, we didn’t have much scientific knowledge about the Olive Ridley turtles, other than the fact that they came to this beach every November to nest. But we knew that they are an endangered species, and we had to do something to save their eggs—from the local fishermen and even foxes who would prey on them,” says James NJ, one of the founding members of the group.

He further mentions that while school books spoke about extinct species like the Dodo, there was no information about how one could conserve the ones that were alive, but on the verge of extinction. And they wanted to change this.

“We started holding classes at schools and colleges in the region as well as sessions at various Grama Sabhas. We had even reached out to the local media. Understanding the gravity of the situation, people, including the local fishing communities slowly started joining us in our walks,” James remembers.

The group changed its name to ‘Green Habitat’ in 2002 as an independent and non-profit organisation.

The members began working with local bodies, clubs and self-government institutions like the Mullassery Block Panchayat, Pavaratty Grama Panchayat, Chavakkad municipality, Seethi Sahib VHS School, Edakkazhiyur, and the Open Scout Group of Enammakal.

“We were not a registered group yet back then, but soon we began to receive support from different quarters. The Bengaluru-based Dakshin Foundation was of major help. It was only after receiving reading materials as well as training from the organisation, did we understand the level of involvement that was required to safeguard the hatching process. Also, erosive striations made by the waves were hindering the nesting process, because of which the turtles were laying their eggs unprotected and quite close to the sea. A hatchery was the need of the hour,” explains James.

Finally, in 2006, the group constructed a hatchery along the Chavakkad beach.

“We became more vigilant during our walks because the turtles would come ashore towards the night, and we did not want to step on their nests. Now, after collecting the eggs, we bring them to the hatchery for incubation. Once they hatch, we then take them back to the sea and release them,” adds James, proudly.

In the last two years, James mentions that the arrival of turtles has somewhat been delayed.

“In 2018, the turtles came ashore only in December. I assume it was because of (Cyclone) Ockhi. But this year, the delay was even more prolonged. The turtles landed on the shore only by January, owing to the floods. But there has been a steady increase in numbers. While last year, we came across 14 nests, this year it has risen to 16 nests,” he adds.

These samaritans have set a remarkable benchmark for conservationists, and their work has been silently contributing to a rise in the numbers of the severely endangered turtle.

Thanks to their efforts, a total of 140 hatchlings got to see the light of the day, and with that, made it to the sea this year!

While Green Habitat receives some financial support from the social forestry department, it often becomes hard for the organisation when it comes to funds to buy general apparatus or even infrastructure.

“For example, night vision binoculars would help us to locate the nests, while blankets will protect the fishermen, who join us in our walks, from the cold,” mentions James.

You may also like: Thanks to These Heroes, Mumbai Beach Welcomes Olive Ridley Turtles After 20 Years

The organisation is open to any form of support or contribution, preferably supplies like blankets or fencing. For more information, you can reach out to James at 8289880981.

(Edited by Gayatri Mishra)

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Located in the heartland of Palakkad district in Kerala, Cherpulassery is a town that is off the tourist radar.

Unknown to many, it played a crucial role during India’s freedom struggle. Another reason why Cherpulassery remains a culturally significant town is because a large number of Kathakali and traditional percussion artistes in the state, come from here.

Besides Malayalis and seekers of Kerala’s art and culture legacy, the town rarely finds any mention or recognition from the rest of the country.

But that is all set to change, thanks to the painstaking efforts of an art professor and his students.

The ‘Wall of Peace’ is the brainchild of Suresh K Nair, a renowned artist from the nearby hamlet of Adakkaputhur and a professor at the Banaras Hindu University.

Built across the Government Higher Secondary School in Cherpulassery, this 7,000-sq-m wall is a work of mural art that has been developed in a scroll format with 25 panels depicting the historical and cultural legacy of the town.

In addition to paying tribute to Mozhikkunnam Brahmadathan Namboodiripad, the legendary freedom fighter, and depicting Mahatma Gandhi’s visit to Cherpulassery, the wall also showcases the visages of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose, and his confidant PS Kuttikrishnan Nair carved skillfully in cement.

One can also find panels depicting the artistic legacy of Cherpulassery, the cattle race at Puthanalkkal, the region’s obsession with football as well as the history of Cherpulassery school.

But, the highlight of Wall of Peace is in its name itself—Peace!

Across the wall, one can see the word engraved in nearly 250 officially identified languages including Sanskrit, Tamil, Hindi, Kannada, Bengali, German, Chinese, Japanese, Greek, Nepali, Arabic, and Egyptian, to name a few.

“Our work is derived from the Sanskrit shloka, ‘Lokah samastah sukhino bhavantu.’ Which means—may peace and happiness prevail everywhere. This verse is engraved in Malayalam in the peace panel,” says the fine arts professor to The Better India.

The mirrors embedded in the centre of the peace message panel are also eye-catching and add to its significance.

“I am deeply inspired by Sri Narayana Guru, and my ideology behind this installation was for every person who looks into the mirror to realise that peace lies within us all,” Suresh shares.

One would wonder how did a professor from BHU come to a town as far-flung as Cherpulassery?

“Every year, I take my students to work on various projects outside the precinct of the University with the aim to further their scope of learning through exposure and get them out of their comfort zone. This time I chose Cherpulassery, which is close to my birthplace and 12 of my final year mural students as well as a student from the Sankaracharya University in Kalady, joined me in this pursuit. The government school, where we are building the wall, didn’t have one to begin with. It is nearly 150 years old!” adds Suresh.

Interestingly, the idea behind the Wall of Peace came to Suresh during his student days at Visva Bharati University in Kolkata.

“Back then, I used to be a tea addict! To put an end to this ‘bad’ habit, I decided to go on a fast for a month and consumed only fruits and coconut water. On the last day of the fast, an idea cropped into my head, and that formed the foundation of this project, many, many years later,” he recalls.

The project commenced towards the end of last year and has now become a community initiative.

Today, Suresh and his students, who have have been carving brilliant motifs and elaborate patterns along the wall, find help and support from children, teachers, residents as well as the labourers.

“We have about ten masons, eight labourers, an engineer as well as a contractor from Cherpulassery involved in the project. The work is still ongoing, since I don’t get leave very often from the University. Currently, local painters are priming the wall. Hopefully, the wall will be standing in its entirety by March 20-23. We are yet to decide on the inauguration date,” Suresh concludes.

You may also like: With Their Unique Handmade Traditions, These 15 Little-Known Villages Are a Must-Visit!

To know more about the Wall of Peace and his other art projects, you can write to Suresh K Nair at sureshnair71@rediffmail.com.

(Edited by Gayatri Mishra)

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As one walks along the green roads, click and whoosh sounds grow louder. One can smell the yarn, the dye and the new cloth. Suddenly, the synagogue, the church, the temple and the mosque spread in a 10 sq km area appear happy.

Five months ago, our small town looked very different,” begins Sojan P A, secretary, Chendamangalam’s Kaithiri Neythu Vyavasaya Production cum sale Cooperative Society of Handloom Weavers.

Chendamangalam is a small town in Kerala’s Ernakulam district. It’s a weaver’s village located about 35 km from Kochi. For centuries, almost every person in the village has had a loom. They’ve all survived by weaving the beautiful, soft and highly absorbent cotton fabric. With a GI (Geographical Indication) tag, their saris, dhotis, towels, shirts and trousers sell like hot cakes during festivals in Kerala.

Sojan recalls the night the villagers had to run to save their lives. “We just picked up one or two things from our homes and tried to reach a higher plateau to escape the wrath of the water gushing in our village. At that time, we just couldn’t think of anything else,” he says in broken English interspersed with Malayalam.

It was unexpected. Kerala, a small state in South India, gets heavy rains annually. The abundance of rich biodiversity is due to plenty of rainfall and the reason for the common tagline for the state, ‘God’s Own Country’!

It’s known for its backwaters, canals, palm trees, mountain slopes filled with tea and spice plantations and bountiful wildlife. The Silent Valley National Park houses elephants, langurs, tigers and plenty of snakes and pythons.

So Keralites annually face heavy rains and floods, but the rains of August 2018 were different. At least 500 innocent people died, and the state incurred an overall loss of more than Rs 40,000 crore.

About 15 days after the rains subsided and the water receded, it seemed finally safe for people to return to their homes. The residents of Chendamangalam returned to a devastation they had never faced in their lives and didn’t know how to cope with.

The entire weaving community of Chendamagalam has five weaver’s clusters and about 600 looms. It was on the verge of being wiped out as the receding flood waters left behind wet clay in the looms. There was no way they could be salvaged.

The store and showroom of one such cluster which stored the community’s fabric were flooded, making the stock of Rs 70 lakh almost worthless. A similar scene was met by all other clusters.

“After reading about the calamity of weavers in Chendamangalam, I decided to visit the place and see if I could be of any help,” recalls Shalini James, Kochi-based designer of Mantra label.

Previously, Shalini had worked with the weaver’s cluster headed by Sojan and his group of 120 looms. He knew them and their work. Along with another designer friend, Sreejith Jeevan of Rouka label, they went to the town.

But they weren’t prepared for the sight.

“The stock was not only wet but also dripping with water, the bottom was covered in wet clay and it had already started turning black due to mildew. But at the top, the fabric was wet, and we realised that it could be saved,” recalls Sreejith.

Shalini immediately bought stock worth Rs eight lakh, but realised that the two of them were not enough to help these 120 weavers. They contacted others through social media.

Another Kochi-based designer, Indu Menon of Kara Weaves label, and the fashion retailer of The Wardrobe, Tracy Thomas, stepped in. Between the four of them, and their networks, they formed a group – The Friends of Chendamangalam.

Within a week, they sold goods worth Rs 40 lakh! This was a huge relief to the villagers!

Before selling the fabric, Tracy contacted a dry-cleaner who helped clean the fabric. “As the place was still very wet, we couldn’t dry the good fabric. If we had left it, then fungus would have set in, and the resultant black stains would have been almost impossible to remove. So we had to get the fabric dry-cleaned to be saleable,” says Tracy.

Indu Menon, along with daughter Chitra Gopalakrishnan of Kara Weaves, known for their table and bath linen, sarongs, among other products, bought some of the stock. Their value addition was including small embroidered motifs of the looms to tell the story of the flood and the survival of the weavers.

In fact, at the Kochi-Muziris Biennale, at the Gallery OED in Mattancherry, garments designed by Sreejith, Shalini and Indu are on display until the end of March.

Even at The Wardrobe, Tracy has a section where these garments and linens are displayed for customers. “They are intrigued by the story behind these clothes, the elegance of the design and the comfort of the fabrics,” shares Tracy.

The four didn’t stop at saving the stock and selling it; they decided to go further and get the looms back so that the weavers could start their work. That’s when they started their second step, ‘Looms to life’.

They had evaluated that only 40 looms needed minor repair. The remaining needed to be rebuilt, which would cost Rs 40,000-45,000, each.

“This is when we tapped into the CSR activities of corporates where 114 looms were funded. Even the Kerala Government is helping them immensely,” explains Sreejith.

With the looms repaired, weavers of Chendmangalam got back on their feet. The state government also gave them bulk orders of weaving school uniforms.

This was the time for the third step.

The four ‘Friends of Chendamanagalam’ decided that it was time for the weavers to incorporate new designs and processes of weaving. For decades, they hadn’t experimented or changed their approaches.

Shalini smiles, “Most of the weavers who are older than 50, don’t like the word ‘change’. We are trying to change their mindset. The sale through social media after the floods has now opened doors for them to build a global customer base. People outside Kerala and India have recognised the beauty of these fabrics and are willing to buy them. Now it’s the turn of the weavers to produce something which would help put the Chendamanagalm cotton fabric on a buyer’s must-have list.”

Sreejith agrees that change and international recognition will also enable the emigrating younger generation to return home. He adds, “We are trying to help them learn new designs, to add small embroidered motifs or a signature feature to their products.”

Perhaps the floods were a boon for the weavers. But as the ‘Friends of Chendamangalam’ say, “Every handloom weaver’s cluster in India needs help to survive and keep the tradition of handloom weaving alive. Unfortunately, this has almost vanished from other countries. If anyone needs help in emulating our project, we are willing to step in.”

Also Read: Saris From Bananas: TN Weaver Creates 25 Natural Fibers, Wins National Record!

To get in touch with them, write to friendsofchendamangalam@gmail.com.

(Edited by Shruti Singhal)

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Approximately 650 years ago, when the inquisition of Goa by the Portuguese led to mass conversions, a huge group of people fled the state in rickety boats, hiding in gigantic cooking vessels. They settled in the coastal areas of Kerala.

AV Purushothama Kamath’s ancestors were among this group, and when he was a child, his mother would narrate stories about how the former Maharaja of Kochi welcomed their community.

In the late 19th century, his father purchased a resthouse from the king in Ernakulam and converted it into a family home—the same one that Kamath currently resides in.

Evidently, the 130-year-old home has a rich history attached to it. However, its ancient windows and intricate tiles are not what we wish to focus on.

The subject of this story is the two-acre man-made forest, which lies at the heart of this home.

Located in the bustling metro city of Kochi, Alungal Farms is Kamath’s labour of love and sweat. It  boasts over 2000 varieties of rare medicinal plants, 400 varieties of fruits, different flowers, vegetables, herbs, and even spices—all of which thrive in wild harmony!

Despite being a stone’s throw away from a metro station and the Vyttila Mobility Hub, its canopy of lush greens is home to several migratory birds and butterflies.

And although the land sharks continue to throw bundles of money in the name of development for cents of his land, Kamath is unwilling to let commercialisation ruin the sanctity of this forest.

The Better India got in touch with him and his son Anand to know more about how this journey began.

Building his own forest

Kamath began his stint as a banker in the late 70s. His job involved frequent travel, and somewhere along the way, he started to collect rare medicinal plants during his trips.

In 1984, he quit his job due to his mother’s failing health and returned to his ancestral profession—farming.

He began with cultivating paddy and coconut in 20 cents (8,712 sq ft) of land. It was also around the same time that he actively started collecting endangered species of plants, mostly medicinal, and growing them.

In 1996, he gave up the use of chemicals and began the extensive forestation project.

The method was simple. The bigger plants that could create a canopy were planted close to the boundary walls, and when you moved inside towards the home, the smaller plants, vegetables, fruiting trees, shrubs, and medicinal plants were grown.

Today, the two-acre plot which is almost the size of football fields houses a wide range of medicinal and fruit plants, some of which are highly endangered.

Apart from 42 varieties of mangoes alone, the forest has rare varieties of jackfruit, strawberry, sapota, bananas, apples, blackberries, avocado, lime, starfruit, litchi, mulberry, orange, peach etc. It also has a temporary rain shelter where the family cultivates a range of vegetables and spices for daily consumption like cauliflower, cabbage, carrots, lemon, ginger, turmeric, chillies, coriander, mint, curry leaves etc.

The highlight of the farm though is the range of medicinal plants like aloe vera, ashvattha, ashoka, rudraksham, brahmi, devadaru, eucalyptus, and jatropha to name a few. There is also a nursery with 700 varieties of plants on sale!

Every tree on the farm has a board next to it, where its scientific and Malayalam name is clearly mentioned. This is immensely helpful for students of botany and Ayurveda who come for field visits.

The methods they follow

The farm is water-efficient as it uses drip irrigation. The water for the farm is sourced from a pond spread across six cents of land. The pond which doesn’t dry up even in summers also acts as a reservoir for other homes in the area.

The farm has two desi Kasargod dwarf cows and poultry like hens, cockerels, quails etc. While the eggs from hens and quails are sold, the dung from the cows is used as manure.

Dry leaves, kitchen waste, cow dung, cow urine, curd, jaggery and National Centre of Organic Farming’s waste decomposer are used to make manure. The farm also has its own vermicompost unit.

Anand, Kamath’s youngest son, speaks highly of the waste decomposer. The solution sold in a bottle, which is a consortium of microorganisms, can decompose organic or bio-waste within 30-50 days.

The solution can be multiplied by adding the bottle which costs Rs 20 to a drum containing 200 litres of water and 2 kg of jaggery. All the farmer has to do is, turn the mixture after seven days, until the mixture becomes creamy.

This can be administered to the plants using drip irrigation.

Also Read: Mumbaikar Quits Singapore Job to Grow Soil-Less Food, Earns Rs 15 Lakh/Year Teaching Others

So, how do the Kamaths earn a living?

Apart from selling their organic produce from 84 coconut trees, the banana plantation, and assorted plants, they also gain some income from a property they have rented.

Anand, who also worked as a banker for close to 16 years, adds that he decided to quit his job three years ago to carry forward his father’s work. His wife, Shyama, a dentist, and two children continue to extend their full support.

The activities on the farm have strengthened the familial bonds even more over the years, says Anand to The Better India.

“My biggest inspiration to join my father was my nine-year-old son. He is my father’s first shishya. He is an absolute natural at farming. I would often look on in awe every time my father planted a new plant—he would ensure that if there were two seeds, he would plant one and my son would plant the other. From preparing manure mixing cow dung to naming the rare medicinal plants, his passion inspired me to carry my father’s legacy forward,” says Anand.

Awards and Recognition

Kamath’s 35 years of effort have reaped rich dividends, and he has won numerous including the Kerala Biodiversity Award 2013 and the Vanamitra Award by Kerala Forest Department.

The farm has also been chosen under the Central Government’s ATMA initiative, which makes it a model farm school for smaller farmers to get tips on the best techniques on cultivation and improving soil health.

Kamath vs land sharks

Real estate lobbyists and even telecom operators often line up to buy land from Kamath, but he refuses to give in.

“They begin with the pretence of wanting to know more about the plants and at the end of the tour, ask if we want to sell the land. A certain telecom operator sent one of its employees with the same technique and wanted three cents of our land. They made it sound like we were winning a lottery if we allowed them to set up a tower. I politely asked them to leave and never return. There is nothing that will make me give up my farm,” he says.

Does Kamath have a message for the youngsters?

“We are at an age where everything has become a monetary calculation. So I have a message to give using this math itself. Assume a human being needs three oxygen cylinders to live each day, and each cylinder costs Rs 800. You spend Rs 2400 a day, and almost 8,64,000 a year! However, trees give you oxygen for free. Yet, we do not think twice before we chop them to the ground. My only message for people is to grow trees and protect them. I am proud to have so many trees and rare species of plants. I think it is my way of being able to create nature for nature. It’s the least we can do.”

Kamath is a Vanamitra (friend of the forest) just like his award says, in the truest sense of the word. We cannot thank him enough for building a green lung for Kochi and hope his story continues to inspire more people to take a step towards a greener and sustainable life.

Want to know more about Alungal Farms? Contact AV Purushothamma at 0484-2346199, or +91 97450 07941 or visit their Facebook page here.

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“Amma, why are water and sky blue in colour?” asked my almost-four-year-old a few days ago. While I had a vague recollection of reading about why the sky is blue, I had no idea why the water was. Once I Googled the question, I was disconcerted and frankly confused with the sheer number of websites that cropped up with the possible answers.

To answer and more importantly encourage the curiosity of our children, the Kerala Forest Research Institute (KFRI) has started a helpline aptly called ‘First Question.’ Launched on February 28 celebrated as National Science Day, this telephone helpline is active from 9.30 am to 5.30 pm from Monday to Friday.

Children are encouraged to ask Nature and Science based questions.

The Better India spoke to Dr T V Sajeev, Principal Scientist at KFRI to understand how this helpline works and how it came into being.

Why a helpline?

Children are innately curious beings and tend to ask many questions. However, Dr Sajeev noticed that as the children got to higher classes, the number of questions they asked kept decreasing. He says, “I noticed that the older children asked lesser questions, perhaps because their questions remained unanswered when they were younger.”

Not answering their questions will do more harm than good, because it will stunt their inherent need to ask and learn, he says.

“Do as much as you can to keep fuelling their curiosity and the desire to learn,” he says.

Dr Sajeev says that by the time children reach grades 10 and above, their questions seem to dry up completely. “We must refrain from telling children that they are too young to understand a certain concept or theory, it must be the endeavour of parents and teachers to explain it in an age-appropriate manner to the children,” he adds.

Children speak

Sharing some of the interesting questions that children ask, Dr Sajeev says, “We had a young girl who had planted a sapling. It had grown to a certain level, and there were a few caterpillars that were feeding on the leaves. The girl had called to check if she should be on the plants’ side or the caterpillars’.”

The answer that the helpline gave her was to monitor the caterpillar population, and if it was getting too much, then they asked her to rehabilitate a few to another plant. This young girl was a class three resident of Bihar.

Another child called with four different questions. He said he was a student of class 5. When he had his questions answered, he revealed that he was a student of class 10, but since the questions were rather basic, he felt embarrassed telling them about it.

Dr Sajeev says, “We must ensure that all questions, however basic or difficult they may be, are answered. Only then will the children be confident enough to ask without having to think about it.”

The kind of questions that the helpline has been getting has also seen an evolution over time. “Earlier children in higher classes would call asking about various career prospects, and now we get a lot of questions that begin with “why”,” says Dr Sajeev.

The team behind the helpline

Four KRFI research students and more than 150 domain experts from outside KFRI, answer the questions. “Up until yesterday we were managing about 30 to 35 calls, but over the last two days, that number has increased manifold. We answered almost 150 calls yesterday,” he says.

Currently, the helpline functions via landline with caller-id. The question is noted down, and within 10 minutes a call is made to the child with the answer, depending on their age level, says Dr Sajeev.

Given the volume of calls they have been getting, the helpline plans to add another line as well as a cell number to enable smoother operations.

If you wish to call in with a query, you can do so on 0487-2690222. One does not necessarily have to be a student to avail of this service. “If the child is unable to call and explain the question, we are happy to have others call on their behalf as well,” concludes Dr Sajeev.

He encourages people to use this service to ensure that one always remains curious. The next time my children ask me a question I have no answer to, I know just the number to dial.

(Edited by Saiqua Sultan)

You May Also Like: Exclusive: Meet a Child Prodigy Using His Talents to Raise Lakhs For Crucial Causes!

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As one walks along the green roads, click and whoosh sounds grow louder. One can smell the yarn, the dye and the new cloth. Suddenly, the synagogue, the church, the temple and the mosque spread in a 10 sq km area appear happy.

Five months ago, our small town looked very different,” begins Sojan P A, secretary, Chendamangalam’s Kaithiri Neythu Vyavasaya Production cum sale Cooperative Society of Handloom Weavers.

Chendamangalam is a small town in Kerala’s Ernakulam district. It’s a weaver village located about 35 km from Kochi. For centuries, almost every person in the village has had a loom. They’ve all survived by weaving a beautiful, soft and highly absorbent cotton fabric that has a GI (Geographical Indication) tag today. The fabric is then used to manufacture their saris, dhotis, towels, shirts and trousers that sell like hot cakes during festivals in Kerala.

Sojan recalls the night the villagers had to run to save their lives. “We just picked up one or two things from our homes and tried to reach a higher plateau to escape the wrath of the water gushing in our village. At that time, we just couldn’t think of anything else,” he says in broken English interspersed with Malayalam.

It was unexpected. Kerala, a small state in South India, gets heavy rains annually. The abundance of rich biodiversity is due to plenty of rainfall and the reason for the common tagline for the state, ‘God’s Own Country’!

It’s known for its backwaters, canals, palm trees, mountain slopes filled with tea and spice plantations and bountiful wildlife. The Silent Valley National Park houses elephants, langurs, tigers and plenty of snakes and pythons.

So Keralites annually face heavy rains and floods, but the rains of August 2018 were different. At least 500 innocent people died, and the state incurred an overall loss of more than Rs 40,000 crore.

About 15 days after the rains subsided and the water receded, it seemed finally safe for people to return to their homes. The residents of Chendamangalam returned to a devastation they had never faced in their lives and didn’t know how to cope with.

The entire weaving community of Chendamagalam has five weaver’s clusters and about 600 looms. It was on the verge of being wiped out as the receding flood waters left behind wet clay in the looms. There was no way they could be salvaged.

The store and showroom of one such cluster which stored the community’s fabric were flooded, making the stock of Rs 70 lakh almost worthless. A similar scene was met by all other clusters.

“After reading about the calamity of weavers in Chendamangalam, I decided to visit the place and see if I could be of any help,” recalls Shalini James, Kochi-based designer of Mantra label.

Previously, Shalini had worked with the weaver’s cluster headed by Sojan and his group of 120 looms. He knew them and their work. Along with another designer friend, Sreejith Jeevan of Rouka label, they went to the town.

But they weren’t prepared for the sight.

“The stock was not only wet but also dripping with water, the bottom was covered in wet clay and it had already started turning black due to mildew. But at the top, the fabric was wet, and we realised that it could be saved,” recalls Sreejith.

Shalini immediately bought stock worth Rs eight lakh, but realised that the two of them were not enough to help these 120 weavers. They contacted others through social media.

Another Kochi-based designer, Indu Menon of Kara Weaves label, and the fashion retailer of The Wardrobe, Tracy Thomas, stepped in. Between the four of them, and their networks, they formed a group – The Friends of Chendamangalam.

Within a week, they sold goods worth Rs 40 lakh! This was a huge relief to the villagers!

Before selling the fabric, Tracy contacted a dry-cleaner who helped clean the fabric. “As the place was still very wet, we couldn’t dry the good fabric. If we had left it, then fungus would have set in, and the resultant black stains would have been almost impossible to remove. So we had to get the fabric dry-cleaned to be saleable,” says Tracy.

Indu Menon, along with daughter Chitra Gopalakrishnan of Kara Weaves, known for their table and bath linen, sarongs, among other products, bought some of the stock. Their value addition was including small embroidered motifs of the looms to tell the story of the flood and the survival of the weavers.

In fact, at the Kochi-Muziris Biennale, at the Gallery OED in Mattancherry, garments designed by Sreejith, Shalini and Indu are on display until the end of March.

Even at The Wardrobe, Tracy has a section where these garments and linens are displayed for customers. “They are intrigued by the story behind these clothes, the elegance of the design and the comfort of the fabrics,” shares Tracy.

The four didn’t stop at saving the stock and selling it; they decided to go further and get the looms back so that the weavers could start their work. That’s when they started their second step, ‘Looms to life’.

They had evaluated that only 40 looms needed minor repair. The remaining needed to be rebuilt, which would cost Rs 40,000-45,000, each.

“This is when we tapped into the CSR activities of corporates where 114 looms were funded. Even the Kerala Government is helping them immensely,” explains Sreejith.

With the looms repaired, weavers of Chendmangalam got back on their feet. The state government also gave them bulk orders of weaving school uniforms.

This was the time for the third step.

The four ‘Friends of Chendamanagalam’ decided that it was time for the weavers to incorporate new designs and processes of weaving. For decades, they hadn’t experimented or changed their approaches.

Shalini smiles, “Most of the weavers who are older than 50, don’t like the word ‘change’. We are trying to change their mindset. The sale through social media after the floods has now opened doors for them to build a global customer base. People outside Kerala and India have recognised the beauty of these fabrics and are willing to buy them. Now it’s the turn of the weavers to produce something which would help put the Chendamanagalm cotton fabric on a buyer’s must-have list.”

Sreejith agrees that change and international recognition will also enable the emigrating younger generation to return home. He adds, “We are trying to help them learn new designs, to add small embroidered motifs or a signature feature to their products.”

Perhaps the floods were a boon for the weavers. But as the ‘Friends of Chendamangalam’ say, “Every handloom weaver’s cluster in India needs help to survive and keep the tradition of handloom weaving alive. Unfortunately, this has almost vanished from other countries. If anyone needs help in emulating our project, we are willing to step in.”

Also Read: Saris From Bananas: TN Weaver Creates 25 Natural Fibers, Wins National Record!

To get in touch with them, write to friendsofchendamangalam@gmail.com.

(Edited by Shruti Singhal)

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Of all forms of cancer, breast cancer has the highest rate of incidence in India. Data says that one in every 22 women develop it.

Sadly, the latest cancer statistics in India states that out of every two women who develop breast cancer, one dies.

Unlike what has been observed across the world, the strata of female population being diagnosed with breast cancer is alarmingly getting younger across both urban and rural settings in India. What was once observed among women over the age 50 is getting increasingly detected in the 30-40 age group and sometimes, even younger.

Despite the high prevalence of the disease, there are huge, underlying deficits in the procedural as well as infrastructural facilities for breast cancer and that includes not just detection, diagnosis, counselling or treatment but most importantly, awareness across India.

The most common initial course of action for diagnosing and screening of breast cancer is the mammogram test of which radiation is a major concern. In fact, doctors and cancer specialists in India have repeatedly advised mammogram only after the age of 50.

Additionally, the test is not really an economically viable option for everyone, with its costs ranging anywhere between Rs 1,500 to Rs 8,000.

Addressing all these shortcomings is a pathbreaking invention devised by a group of scientists from Kerala. Years of research and development culminated in a product which, if sold commercially, would play a crucial role in an economically viable method of diagnosing breast cancer across India.

A team from Thrissur branch of Centre for Materials for Electronics Technology (C-MET) invented a wearable contraption that is embedded with sensors and incorporates thermal imaging to detect cancerous cells in breasts.

The team was led by Dr A Seema as its Chief Investigating Officer, who was recently awarded the prestigious Nari Shakti Puraskar by the President of India for this revolutionary device.

Speaking to The Better India (TBI), Dr Seema sheds light upon the catalytic moment that led the team to developing the device.

“The idea took root when the director of Malabar Cancer Centre (Kannur) visited us sometime in 2014. They’ve been our medical partners in this project. They broached the idea of working out ways of breast cancer detection on a community scale. Mammogram was the golden standard but the provision wasn’t available in even Primary Health Centres across the country. What they had in mind was a portable device that could be implemented at a community level. This propelled us to conceptualise a wearable device for detection through thermal imaging,” she explains.

The next four years went into developing the device and then getting it approved through successful clinical trials conducted at Malabar Cancer Centre.

So, how does this thermal-sensor embedded device work?

“The sensors map the skin temperature of the breast and detects the presence of any form of abnormalities. Which can then form the basis for patients to take further course of action,” Dr Seema adds.

She goes on to explain how this device stands out from the regular mammogram, “There is no exposure to radiation with this device as it physically maps the breast skin temperature. In addition to that, the device is portable which makes it perfect for any health care or ASHA worker to carry with them during field visits. It can be easily contained in a small briefcase.”

Another feature is that a person does not experience any pain that is inevitable with the mammogram screening.

“Most importantly, this device ensures the privacy of the wearer because one can wear clothes over it during the test. This is really significant as most women deter from taking the mammogram or any form of clinical screening because of their cultural conditioning and privacy issues,” she elaborates.

Furthermore, the contraption doesn’t have any age restrictions like the mammogram, “Even girls as young as 15 or 20 years of age can use the wearable device which caters to all body types. This is not possible in the case with the mammogram, as only women above 40 can undertake the screening. We have resolved that issue as well,” she adds.

Shedding light on the cost factor, Dr Seema explains that a digital mammogram machine easily costs about Rs 3.5 crores, while their device with its data acquisition system, amounts up to Rs 25,000 and that is only for one hospital.

“The wearable device alone would cost between Rs 400-500 and these are our lab estimates. Once commercialised, it could even get cheaper. If one is to go through the tests alone, I can ascertain that it wouldn’t cost more than Rs 50,” she says.

A total of 117 patients and 200 volunteers were part of the C-MET team’s clinical trials. Currently, they are working in collaboration with a company to make the technology commercial.

“At present, they are in the training process and as soon as their production begins, another set of clinical trials will be undertaken from their end. As these trials often take some time, we are estimating that the device will be in the market in a year or so,” she informs.

Dr Seema specially mentions that this was not an individual project and attributes her team for their years of collective hard work and invaluable contribution that make the innovation a success. The team includes scientist Muralidharan along with Arathi K, Renjith, Deepak, Haseena, Eva Ignatius, Sreelakshmi as the core project team while Sunny and Sridhar Krishna comprised the technical staff.

In addition to the Nari Shakti Puraskar, their innovation received national recognition after being awarded the National Award for Women’s Development through Application of Science & Technology (NAWD) on National Science Day last year.

Conferred by the Department of Science & Technology (DST) every year, the prestigious award recognises the contribution of individuals and institutions who have worked at the grassroots level for women development through application of science and technology.

“Receiving awards and recognition is really motivating but what really would validate our years of effort would be when this device will reach the market and benefit every single woman. That was the sole reason why we immediately put out the device for commercialisation as soon as it fulfilled the clinical trials. We are earnestly waiting for that day,” she concludes.

You may also like: How Barging Into Homes Is Helping this Young Doctor Nip Breast Cancer in the Bud!

Given its remarkable features, the scope of their wearable device is not just promising but also immense for containing breast cancer in India, once made completely commercial. We thank Dr Seema and the team for their pioneering innovation that would finally give a respite to women across the country.

(Edited by Saiqua Sultan)

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9-year-old Gouri is both anxious and excited to know the status of the sapling she had planted in December last year. She rings up her great grandmother Kollakkayil Devaki Amma for answers. Not wanting to reveal the result yet, Devaki Amma tries to avoid answering and instead tells her to get ready for a new plantation at their ancestral home in the upcoming summer vacations.

Narrating this incident to The Better India (TBI), Devaki Amma smiles and reminisces about the first ever sapling she had planted four decades ago.

For generations, my family and in-laws have been working in the agricultural industry. While the men are involved in corporate jobs, women of the house have predominantly handled the paddy cultivation, she explains.

Devaki Amma joined her mother-in-law to cultivate paddy post marriage and continued until 1980. That year, she injured her leg severely in an accident and was advised to avoid walking for a couple of years.

Also Read: This Woman Quit Her Dream Job to Help 30k Youngsters in Nagaland Get Jobs!

As she was injured and her mother-in-law too old, the family had to discontinue the paddy production.

But her undying love for farming did not cease. Devaki Amma planted one sapling in the backyard of her home three years after the accident. One sapling led to another, and before she knew it, she had created a lush green forest spread over five acres of land in her private property in Onattukara region in Alappuzha district of Kerala.

From the time his wife started her mission till the day he died, Devaki Amma’s husband Gopalakrishna Pillai—a teacher by profession—brought her different varieties of seeds every day. Her children and relatives also supported her immensely either by morally encouraging her or by gifting her several species of plant saplings.

“Four generations have contributed to my mother’s journey of planting trees. During school vacations, Amma’s grandchildren and their children visit the house to see the status of old plants and to plant new ones. The enthusiasm and fervour around planting trees are almost like a festival,” Prof D Thankamani, Devaki Amma’s daughter, also Head of Environment Department at Thiruvananthapuram Engineering College tells TBI.

One of her granddaughters is currently studying Botany so that she can take Devaki Amma’s love for all things that grow forward.

Neutralising Carbon Footprints, Migratory Birds and More

Located close to the beautiful backwaters of God’s Own Country, Devaki Amma’s house is spacious, abundantly supplied with natural water and climatic conditions conducive to plant growth.

With a couple of private ponds, a wetland and animals like cows, buffalos and oxen, Devaki Amma has been single-handedly nurturing her forest for years.

What’s more?

She uses greener options to sustain the forest. For instance, she uses organic manure to grow teak, mahogany, tamarind, mango, bamboo and pine. Shrubs, creepers, medicinal and exotic plants are also a part of this Devaki Amma-made forest. Close to 1,000 trees now supply fruits, flowers and vegetables.

This has led to multiple positive outcomes, one of them being the presence of exotic and migratory birds in the forest.

Instead of restricting the birds and animals by putting nets, I have made water and nest provisions for them. As a result, you can see peacock, monkeys and exotic birds like Amur Falcon, Bluethroat, Black Winged Stilt and Emerald Dove in the forest, says the 85-year-old.

Well-versed with the problem of global warming and environmental degradation across the world, Devaki Amma wants people to neutralise their carbon footprints.

Planting a tree is the most effective and feasible option. Our family is cancelling carbon footprints by planting trees for four decades now, she says.

She is also taking care of water problems by practising Rain Water Harvesting in the forest.

Age No Bar

Though physical challenges have made her hire people to look after her beloved forest, Devaki Amma still strolls around her forest and takes care of the plants like a mother.

Also Read: Meghalaya Teacher Grows Unique Turmeric, Helps 900+ Farmers Triple Their Income!

“Covering five acres of land is no easy task. But every morning she makes sure she walks even if it is for five minutes. Since there are very few occasions when she plants a sapling, she talks to the trees. This way she doesn’t feel that she is neglecting her forest,” says Thankamani.

India’s President Ram Nath Kovind recently awarded Devaki Amma with the Nari Shakti Puruskar for her enormous contribution towards the environment and congratulated the forest warrior on his Facebook timeline. The President said,

Devaki Amma has been relentlessly working toward protecting biodiversity by planting and nurturing plants from various parts of India. Her contribution toward the environment has been a driving force of change and has raised awareness and consciousness of people.

The Nari Puruskar award is her second national award, first being the Indira Priyadarshini Vrikshamitra award. Besides, she has won several awards from the State Government including Vanamitra Award and Harita Vyakti Puraskar.

With so many accolades and awards in her basket, the biggest happiness for Devika Amma is to see her grandchildren and great-grandchildren developing a safe environment for future generations.

(Edited by Saiqua Sultan)

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The tiny village of Kanjikuzhi in Alappuzha district of Kerala has a very peculiar topography. Known to be one of the first villages to grow organic produce, it should come as a surprise to many to learn the nature of its soil is like sand—extremely dry and unfit for farming.

But if you visit this village today, every single one of 8,600 families in Kanjikuzhi grow their own vegetables and even sell the surplus to nearby cities like Kochi, Kottayam and Alappuzha. Quite a paradox, isn’t it?

By embracing organic farming, Kanjikuzhi overcame its geographical deficits and the story of how they did it, is quite interesting.

It all began in the mid-nineties when the panchayat members of Kanjikuzhi started to observe a steady decline in farming across the State.

The predominantly farming economy supported by traditional trades like manufacturing coir products would then have to depend upon crops and vegetable supplied from other States to feed itself.

Also, the fear of fertilisers and pesticides in the crops was hovering in hindsight.

“In 1995, our panchayat decided to make it mandatory for every household to grow their vegetables. Organic farming as a concept wasn’t even known to people back then. If you look back, our traditional agrarian practices utilised only organic methods before chemical fertilisers and pesticides made their way into the Indian markets. Our objective was to establish a self-sustaining model for our community through organic means, and the panchayat was willing to go the extra mile to achieve it,” says MG Raju, the panchayat president of Kanjikuzhi.

To begin with, the need to motivate people that it was possible to grow vegetables from a land that they knew was infertile, was crucial.

“It wasn’t that the soil couldn’t grow anything at all. It had lost all of its nutrients and had almost acquired a sand-like texture. After measuring the pH value of the soil, we understood that with ample inundation and proper composting, it could be made cultivable,” he says.

Following this, the panchayat decided to come up with different policies and schemes that would encourage people to take up organic farming dedicatedly.

“From organic compost at subsidised rates to seeds and saplings, we began distributing relevant supplies that would enable people to grow vegetables at their homes. There were still a few farmers who were pursuing agriculture for livelihood. They then formed a collective to guide and assist the newcomers. This silent revolution was flagged off with 60 households back then,” he recalls.

A year later, this movement found greater momentum, with support from Dr Thomas Issac, who at the time, was helming the People’s Plan Campaign (PPC).

Currently heading the State’s finance ministry, he has chosen the platform to spread the word about how a soil-deprived region like Kanjikuzhi was efficiently venturing into organic farming from the grassroots level.

While providing the families with guidance, supplies and equipment was the panchayat’s primary objective, what made the initiative a successful model was the local administrative body’s unwavering support and commitment to the cause through the years.

Initiatives often started with much aplomb and energy, usually fizzle out over time due to lack of enterprise by the participants. To ensure that didn’t happen in Kanjikuzhi, the panchayat deployed a group of volunteers from their midst to monitor the vegetation across every household and keep them motivated, while providing any form of help or guidance as and when the need arose.

Holding the hands of the residents at every step, the panchayat soon began to see every household not just cultivate and harvest vegetables for their own needs, but also in surplus.

Locally consumed vegetables like beans, lady’s finger, cabbage, green chilli, bitter gourd, snake gourd, cucumber, cauliflower, brinjal and cheera (red spinach) can be found in every household today in Kanjikuzhi. They harvested about 40,000 tonnes of vegetables last year.

With more and more families harvesting more than what they need at home, the sale of the surplus produce became a primary concern. Furthermore, for the residents to sell their produce individually was not an economically viable option, as the closest marketplace for them was Kochi, about 75 km away.

To address this issue, the panchayat decided to put in place a committee that would buy the produce from households willing to sell their surplus. “It would also bring some income to these households, while the buyers could take home healthy and naturally grown vegetables from Kanjikuzhi,” Raju adds.

Panchayat Development Samiti or PDS then went ahead and set up stalls along the highway to sell the organic produce.

“Because our shops are on the highway, we have sold our produce to buyers coming from Alappuzha, Kottayam and Kochi,” Raju adds.

It has been 24 years since the residents of this little town became self-sufficient by going organic.

Today, Kanjikuzhi’s transition to organic farming is a model for study for agricultural colleges and institutions across the country. In addition to that, the residents often find people from other countries in their midst to study their success story as well as learn organic farming in the field.

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Working their way out of an impossible situation, Kanjikuzhi’s story of organic farming is an amazing example of community empowerment fuelled by local administration that the rest of the country can surely learn from.

(Edited by Saiqua Sultan)

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Natives of Mylambadi village of Meenangadi panchayat in Wayanad, Binu Thomas, and Benny Thomas are childhood friends. While both of their families have been traditionally engaged in farming, the duo did not follow in their footsteps and pursued different professions.

Where Binu worked in the jewellery sector, Benny had his own taxi service in the town. But the young men were not happy with their jobs owing to an upsettingly skewed work-life balance.

“I could never find any quality time to spend with my family. Despite working for over 12 hours, even getting leaves sanctioned seemed nearly impossible. Life had become jaded for me, and I began contemplating about returning to my roots,” says Binu to The Better India (TBI).

After quitting his job, he came back to Meenangadi, only to find his friend Benny feeling facing the same issues of work-life imbalance.

“When I discussed giving farming a try, he was immediately on board. Our parents have always been an inspiration and farming was in our blood. It just took us some time to realise it,” laughs Binu.

In their early thirties, the duo wanted to cultivate something that their parents had never tried, and they wanted to do it on a large scale to get good returns. “We zeroed down on long beans, as it is one of the widely consumed vegetables across the state. But the greater motivator had been to try something different,” Binu adds.

To realise their dream, they began looking for a plot to lease and shortly stumbled upon a 2.5 acre-patch near their residences. However, as the plot had been unused for a while, they had to spend some time to make the land cultivable again.

“We took guidance from our family as well as friends to fix the land. We then measured the pH by testing the soil and added nutrients like calcium to reach the necessary value to kickstart farming. Once that became better, we began with the cultivation sometime towards November end,” Binu explains.

Interestingly, the life cycle of long beans plants does not exceed more than 120 days. On February 11 Binu and Benny harvested their first yield which was about 300 kg.

“It wasn’t near the amount that we’d hoped to harvest, but it was indeed a start. Things began to change gradually and shortly, and we were able to harvest about 1000 kg every alternate day. Despite small setbacks, we never lost hope and kept motivating ourselves. Perhaps that was how we were able to reach our self-set targets,” he shares.

The duo attribute Assistant Agricultural Officer, T V Sajeesh from Meenangadi Krishi Bhavan for their successful foray into farming.

“During our initial days, we had approached him to guide us, and he happily agreed. From inspecting our farm to giving us tips on how to fix the required nutrients in the soil, his support, quite literally, boosted not just our harvests, but also our spirits. Sometimes, he would look at the leaf of a plant and tell us what nutrients should be added to make them healthy,” Binu says.

Initially, the duo sold their produce in the market at Rs 25 per kg themselves, but now wholesale dealers from Meenangadi, and even from Sulthan Bathery come to collect the vegetable in bulk.

Binu shares that the markets in Bengaluru and Mysuru decide the market price of long beans in their area which keeps fluctuating.

“After the first two weeks, we began selling our harvest at Rs 40 per kg after a multifold increase in the yield. Plus, we started having dealers reach out to us to buy the beans straight from the farm. The rates often change. As the current cycle of harvest is slowly approaching its end, we are now selling the beans at Rs 38 per kg,” he adds.

The handsome returns are keeping the duo motivated. It did not take the local media long to cover their success story. “The media coverage further boosted our morale because soon enough, we received orders for export from Qatar, and that too, for thrice the quantity that we’ve harvested till now!” Binu shares excitedly.

Compared to their previous professions, Binu says they feel happier and do not regret the choice they made.

Life is a little less stressful with both friends getting enough time to spend with their families while earning better than they did before.

“I wouldn’t say that such decisions aren’t risky. But one needs to believe in their choices, no matter how unpredictable the future might seem. The commitment has to be long-standing; you can’t leave it halfway if things don’t work out midway. We were very focused right from the beginning. Benny had a near militant meticulousness about the entire process. Some days if I would suggest postponing to manure the field by only a day, he would adamantly make sure to add the manure at the right time. The timely nurturing plays a crucial role and novice farmers must keep that in mind,” he concludes.

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Though Binu and Benny are focusing solely on long beans farming for now, they hope to diversify in the future. We wish the enterprising young farmers good luck with their newfound love in agriculture and hope that they find success with every sowing period.

If the duo’s story inspired you, or you wish to seek any tips or guidance on long beans farming, you can reach out to Binu at 9947544404.

(Edited by Saiqua Sultan)

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“I am willing to work as a domestic help or even a cleaner—any job that will provide me with a stable livelihood to look after my family. But because of how I look, no one is willing to hire me,” says KV Preethi.

A native of the Chelakkara town in Kerala’s Thrissur district, Preethi was born with a severe case of Ichthyosis, a rare skin condition that causes dryness and a scaly appearance.

While Preethi has been through multiple treatments for her skin, including both Ayurveda and allopathy, the condition causes her skin to peel bringing with it agonising pain, during the summer.

“My condition is such that I must not be exposed to heat, as that causes my skin to peel, and eyes to water, along with intense body pain. But more than that, it is the mental agony that I’ve endured all my life, which is even more debilitating,” says the 30-year-old to The Better India.

Preethi comes from an extremely impoverished background. Her mother, who used to work as a coolie labourer, was the family’s sole breadwinner.

“Her meagre wages used to run our household as well as fund my treatment. Now she is old and is physically incapable of doing any laborious activity. My brother, who is still studying, had to take up jobs to feed us and also for my treatment. Our situation was deplorable, and I wanted to help out too. That’s why I began to look for jobs,” she says.

Preethi had to drop out of school after Class 10 because of her poor financial background. While she has faced severe ridicule and humiliation while growing up, people in the region have also come forward to help with the cost of her treatment, which is quite expensive.

“The past treatments have brought me a lot of relief. With my educational qualifications, I know that I cannot expect jobs in the formal sector, but thanks to these treatments, I can do simple household or cleaning jobs which require less effort and don’t cause me any pain,” says Preethi.

Recently, her heartbreaking story was covered by local media, which seemed to have brought in some traction.

Also, a social worker named Sushant Nilambur organised a crowdfunding campaign for Preethi’s treatment that managed to raise around Rs 50 lakhs in 10 days.

“I’ve been told that people have made generous contributions to fund for my treatment, which will be resumed soon. I’m really grateful for the compassion that these kind-hearted folks have shown. But still, there has been no call for employment—something that I’m desperately hoping for,” she mentions.

One thing that Preethi has been steadfast about is to withhold information about her family, as she feels that her mother or brother should not face humiliation or become victims of gossip because of her.

Despite having faced severe hardships throughout her life, Preethi comes across as a very humble and soft-spoken person. She and her family deserve better, and we can all come together to help her— by arranging a paying job for her. She has already received sufficient funds for her treatment,  job opportunity would bring stability and dignity to her life.

For any job opportunities, you can reach out to Preethi at 9526523172.

(Edited by Gayatri Mishra)

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Right from childhood, craft had always intrigued Aparna S. A resident of Munroe Thuruthu in Kollam, she would dabble in different craft forms, despite having no formal training. Her exceptional handiwork captivated her family and friends.

Her passion for craft became pronounced with terracotta jewellery which she started making during her undergraduate days.

Friends, teachers and acquaintances from college—everyone wanted to buy her products. Soon, word spread and more orders began pouring in. She then decided to sell her craft work through social media under the brand name, Rudra.

But today, the 23-year-old young woman is on a slightly different mission—one that brings craft and conservation under a single umbrella.

Roughly over a year and a half ago, Aparna began noticing mounds of glass bottles discarded near the banks of Ashtamudi Kayal (lake), which was quite close to her home.

“While these were definitely littered around the entire area, I’d noticed that most of these bottles were quite pretty. Whenever I passed this way, I would collect the bottles with the intention of upcycling them creatively. I started with simple drawings and later progressed to art techniques like decoupage as well as calligraphy,” she says.

With complete passion and dedication, she transformed these bottles into works of art. When her beautifully upcycled bottles began piling up in her backyard, she created a Facebook page to sell them. Giving a quirky edge to the Malayalam word for bottle, she named her new venture ‘Quppi’.

And just like her terracotta jewellery, her “Quppi” wares also found an instant fan base.

“It was encouraging as I began getting a lot of orders. While I was happy that everyone loved my products, what made me happier was the fact that the areas from where I was picking these discarded bottles were slowly becoming cleaner. My efforts were successful in not only making the lakeside more beautiful but also in inspiring others. Seeing me in action, people across Kollam started collecting discarded bottles and would supply these to me for upcycling. Change was happening through one simple act!” says Aparna, who is currently pursuing her first year of B.Ed.

Encouraged by this momentum, Aparna was driven to scale up her conservation initiative through community participation.

On 17 March, she and her friends organised a clean-up drive along Link Road near Kerala State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) bus stand in the city.

“A lot of people joined us in this initiative, and by the end of it, we managed to collect about a truckload worth of bottles. They helped with not just the collection of the bottles but also cleaning these for my use later,” she adds.

This inspired her further to do something for the “World Water Day”, on 22 March.

“It is not just glass bottles that lie along the banks of Ashtamudi Kayal, but a plethora of other waste too. So many people are into craft these days and specially upcycling. The way I specialise in glass bottles, I was sure that there would be people who work with materials like plastic and other waste too. We could invite people to fish out for waste and ask them to upcycle these very materials on the spot. That’s how this drive was envisioned,” Aparna explains.

She circulated a simple post on the clean-up drive amongst her friends and acquaintances, hoping for decent participation. Choosing the shady location of DTPC’s Adventure Park, she requested the authorities for allowing the participants to work there. To her surprise, they told her that no ticket charges would be levied from them as they were doing something good for the environment.

Her small network of friends worked quite well as over 100 people joined Aparna and her friends at the park on 22 March.

“We started at 11 am with a pep talk. There were students from engineering and fashion design colleges as well as kids under the Mathrubhumi Seed programme. In addition to that, teachers and authorities from the Health Department as well as school students joined us in our collection drive. By noon, the collection was complete, and we dispersed for lunch. We’d set up a small stall where I’d put kept art supplies that people could use. All of us wrapped up with our upcycled products by 4.30 in the evening,” she excitedly shares.

Advocate Rahul V I, a known figure who had worked in several cases associated with Ashtamudi Kayal also joined Aparna in her mission. “He had personally reached out to me to join this initiative. He gave a encouraging speech at the event that motivated us all. The overall response was overwhelming,” she adds.

Aparna and her friends then set up a stall near the KSRTC bus stand by 5 in the evening the same day, and managed to sell all the products and received good returns.

“While my initiative was never profit-oriented, the returns from the sales had been really heartening. None of my drives has been powered by any sponsors or corporate backing. I do it purely out of a passion for craft and through that, for our environment,” Aparna shares.

She attributes her mother for the creative strain in her blood, who like Aparna, loves craft but has no formal training.

“Like I go around collecting bottles, my mother, who works in the State Health Department, loves collecting pots and every time she steps out, she gets at least one home!” laughs Aparna.

As for future plans, the young woman intends to empower survivors of sexual abuse and human trafficking at the Nirbhaya shelter home in the city by teaching them her upcycled bottle craft. “I used to volunteer there earlier and taught kids to elderly women different craft forms. Engaging them in art and craft is relaxing and rejuvenating for them. Now, I want them to work with them and help them to earn a living out of it,” she concludes.

We admire Aparna’s passion for craft and how she is effectively utilising her skills for the greater cause of conserving Asthamudi Kayal. A truly inspiring youngster, we wish her luck in all her future endeavours.

To check out Aparna’s upcycled bottle craft, you can go to the Quppi Facebook page here. You can also reach out to Aparna at 7907504101.

(Edited by Saiqua Sultan)

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It all began in 2006.

The 101 households within a small ward in the village of Vengeri near Kozhikode, Kerala, were rattled when a survey of the homes in the locality revealed that seven people were battling cancer, five of whom were women. The survey was conducted by the National Service Scheme (NSS) volunteers of Providence Women’s College.

“For the longest time, movie theatres, radio stations, televisions, and public service advertisements informed us how smoking and drinking caused cancer. But none of these women were smokers or alcoholics. And for us, almost twelve years ago, the rising cancer cases were shocking,” recalls Reema, a resident of Vengeri.

It was at the time, five members from the village, namely Baburaj Parambath, P P Mohanan, Ramanathan P P, Sathyanathan A P, and Rajeev E P, got together and mobilised the Niravu Residential Society.

Members from all 101 households came together to get to the root of the issues plaguing their village and find solutions.

They reached out to experts, who after a thorough inspection, realised that most women in the village burnt plastic, which released toxic fumes. Besides, much of the produce consumed wasn’t locally grown and doused with chemical pesticides.

The residents decided to turn to the wisdom of the elderly members. They lamented over how most people in the village had abandoned agriculture and turned to white-collar jobs. Besides, the past decades saw several villagers and youngsters migrate to cities for better lives and higher education.

“The older, experienced farmers in our village told us about how they never had to rely on plastic. They grew their own paddy, wheat, fruits, vegetables and herbs. And every house, back in the day, had a beautiful backyard that boasted of these green marvels,” adds Reema, a member of Niravu.

Over the years, these backyards were abandoned, and plastic became an integral part of their lifestyle.

The clock was ticking and the villagers could either wait for a tragedy to befall them or dive into action. They chose the former.

Niravu mobilised every family to segregate its waste and eliminate plastic in a phased manner.

Every home was encouraged to keep its compound clean and collect all recyclable items like plastic, glass, and metals.

While these items were sent to recycling units, the next step was to help people grow their own food.

“Around the same time, we were alerted about an incident in the nearby district of Malappuram. A truck carrying lady’s fingers from Tamil Nadu to Kozhikode met with an accident and upturned close to a water body. While the vegetables were retrieved, a day later, most of the fish and amphibians in the water body were found dead. It helped us create awareness about how harmful chemical-doused vegetables could be,” says Reema.

She continues, “We started promoting organic farming in every household. Today, the 101 households are now 140. Within the ward, each has its own backyard, where we cultivate our food. From vegetables like lady’s finger, baby tomato, ivy gourd, tomato, cluster beans, brinjal cowpea, green chilli to leafy greens, herbs, and fruits, we grow it all. While most use kitchen waste and cow dung manure for cultivation as organic growth promoters, one home has turned to hi-tech aquaponics!”

Each home has a compost pit. Reema’s home has a biogas plant; its sludge is diluted with water and used as organic fertiliser. Several homes have joined hands to co-own biogas plants and follow the method.

The compost pits set up in the backyards turn kitchen and organic waste into manure in 60 days. The method of cultivation too is water-efficient with drip irrigation. Some villagers also prefer using grow bags and earthen pots, which require no more than a mug of water. The villagers also add coconut husk to the earthen pots and grow bags. This helps retain water for a longer time and keeps the soil moist.

Every home grows different kinds of vegetables, and one particular crop in bulk.

The produce is excessive in every season. So they distribute it to other households in exchange for what they need.

With a financial grant from NABARD, the villagers also started an organic outlet where excess vegetables are sold.

Apart from their backyards, the villagers cultivate paddy, wheat, and other grains on common land.

The elders of the villagers, impressed by the efforts of the villagers and NSS students, extended support by handing over heirloom seeds that they had preserved.

Besides, most young women who moved to other villages after their weddings, were asked to send rare native seeds from their marital villages. Also, the women who were married into this village would get seeds from their parental villages.

When people in the organic community were protesting against BT Brinjal, a genetically-modified variety, Niravu decided to protest in an unconventional manner.

They grew an indigenous variety of brinjal, which was then named Vengri Brinjal after the village. Niravu was felicitated with a certificate of merit from the Kerala Agriculture University (KAU) for these tasty, high-yielding brinjals, which were suitable for backyard vegetable gardens.

With an average length of 44 cm and thickness of 12.5 cm, the brinjal plant was taller than other varieties. It yielded 1.75 kg on an average. The group cultivated 1,00,000 brinjals at the time. It has a shelf life of five years, adds Reema.

This particular ward with its 101 households was declared as the first organic ward in Kerala in 2008. Reema adds how in 2010, the Chief Minister chose Vengeri to declare Kerala’s organic policy.

The efforts of the villagers have almost promoted a new-found love among the youngsters for organic farming and innovation. One of the youngsters, who is a medical student, used empty glucose bottles filled with water for drip irrigation.

Two years ago, Niravu was registered as an organisation. Since then, it has been working on initiatives like cleaning a public pond; setting up pipe connections for drip irrigation; practicing rainwater harvesting; encouraging the use of solar panels, biogas and LED bulbs; promoting zero-waste living; and even organising Midori, the first of its kind expo.

Midori, which gets its name from the Japanese word for greenery, exhibited the organic and sustainable way of life of the people of Vengeri. From showing off their smart backyards and rooftop gardens to sustainable sanitation systems, each home in the village had a unique model to present.

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It seems like there is no stopping these villagers who have made more than 63 acres of farmland organic. We hope they continue their efforts and make their village a model for the rest of the country to follow.

More power to them!

If this story inspired you, get in touch with Niravu at niravuvengerikzd@gmail.com or visit their website here.

(Edited by Shruti Singhal)

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Based on a directive from the Central Election Commission, which stated that elections must be conducted in an environment-friendly manner, all 14 districts in Kerala, alongside Haritha Keralam Mission and Suchitwa Mission, have issued guidelines.

While the Haritha Keralam Mission is a state-backed umbrella mission aimed at waste management, organic farming, water resources management, the Suchitwa Mission is responsible for providing technical and managerial support for waste management to the local self-government.

As per the ECI directive, all parties and candidates must refrain from using single-use plastic material for their campaigns. They have been directed not to use PVC flex boards, and instead use boards, banners and posters made of cloth.

At the booth level, authorities have asked candidates to serve food in steel plates or plantain leaves, besides serving water from earthen pots in steel glasses.

Parties have been asked to make flags out of recycled paper. This green protocol is aimed at reducing waste generation and the use of non-biodegradable material.

“When the ECI issued this directive, I wrote a letter to the Chief Electoral Officer of Kerala, asking him to take it seriously and inquiring whether election officers and district administration would lead the charge in ensuring the green protocol is observed. They responded to my proposal very positively,” R Ajaykumar Verma tells The Better India. He is the executive director of the Suchitwa Mission.

Through awareness programmes, various district administrations have persuaded candidates to desist using PVC flex boards and other plastic materials. In Thiruvananthapuram, the local District Collector met with candidates from all political parties to lay out the green protocol.

“Facilitation centres have been set up at the district, block, taluk, and panchayat levels, so the candidates are persuaded against violating the rules of the green protocol. These centres train assistant returning officers (AROs) and others involved in the election process including local activists. They are also conducting IEC (Information, Education and Communication) sessions on why flex should not be used, what the alternative materials are, how they should reduce the generation of waste, and how waste can be reduced in the polling booths and stations, besides other measures,” says Verma.

Meanwhile, speaking to The Hindu, Jai P Bal, said, “Political parties remove campaign materials that are found to have violated the green protocol as soon as block-level nodal officers take their photographs and report it over the mobile app cVigil”. He is the Suchitwa Mission coordinator, and district nodal officer for the green protocol in Ernakulam district.

Assisting authorities on the ground to implement the protocol during the upcoming elections is the recent Kerala High Court order banning the use of PVC flex boards and other non-biodegradable material. This has brought back the sticking of posters and wall graffiti in a major way.

“Besides flex boards, parties use a lot of plastic material in arranging polling booths and the welcome extravaganza for candidates. In fact, the Haritha Keralam Mission has prepared an entire handbook in Malayalam for all stakeholders,” informs another official of the Haritha Keralam Mission, who did not wish to be named.

He continues, “However, different districts have used different tools to educate candidates. In Pathanamthitta district, whenever candidates file their nominations, the collector gives them a letter stating how he/she must be a green MP, stop single-use plastic, reduce waste generation and promote green protocol, among other suggestions. They also receive a bag with a steel bottle as opposed to plastic, and an ink pen so that empty plastic refills aren’t thrown, along with cloth bags. In other districts, pro-green rallies are organised, and students speak to candidates to raise awareness.”

Meanwhile, in the Ernakulam district unit of the Suchitwa Mission, revenues officials and local government bodies who set up the best polling booths in compliance with the green protocol and dispose of campaign materials in the best manner will receive an award.

This is the first time Kerala is implementing a green protocol in the elections. With the poll process just starting, officials have found that there isn’t much use of plastic, unlike earlier.

“We don’t find PVC flex boards anymore, but if they are used, the district administration is removing them. Overall, people are aware that we are going eco-friendly and must not use material that can pollute the environment. Waste generated in a normal electoral process will be considerably reduced. All district magistrates are leading the way in adopting these measures in a big way,” says Verma, confidently.

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Assisting candidates and party workers on the ground is Kudumbashree, by providing them with steel plates and glasses on rent. Moreover, after the polls, authorities are expected to conduct a massive clean-up exercise where paper waste will be recycled.

In India’s largest exercise in democracy, Kerala is leading the way for the environment.

(Edited by Shruti Singhal)

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