Himalayas visible for first time in 30 years as pollution levels in India drop
As the lockdown to stop the spread of coronavirus in India continues, pollution levels across much of the country have dropped sharply. Now some residents in northern India say they can see the snow-capped Himalayas 200 kilometres away for the first time in 30 years.
Fluent in five languages, this woman is allaying migrant workers’ concerns in Kerala
Supriya Debnath from Odisha has been trained by the Nation Health Mission to circulate COVID-19 information on a helpline set up for migrant workers
Ever since the lockdown was announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on March 24, Kerala has been on the frontline when it comes to combating the consequences of both the pandemic and the lockdown that it has led to.
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Lockdown: India’s polluted holy river Ganga self-purifies!
Today is the 10th day of our nationwide lockdown in view of the coronavirus outbreak and people are coming to terms with this unprecedented impact. As India’s 1.3 billion people continue to stay at home on this 10th day, the country’s most polluted holy river Ganga has seen significant improvement.
Irfan and Yusuf Pathan have reportedly distributed 10,000 kg rice and 700 kg potatoes amidst the widespread COVID-19 pandemic in the country, with COVID-19 cases already crossing the 3500 mark in India. The news comes on the back of Sourav Ganguly donating Rs 50 lakh rice to poor people on Saturday.
Teaching Story : Listen, listen, listen
A jampacked courtroom was abuzz with people from all over the world and from various sections of society. Emotions are running high. Anger and frustration writ on their faces and some even swearing aloud Punish,”Prosecute” “kill” when the Honourable Judge makes his entry.
The judge, all of fifty six, puts his hand over his bald head and straightens his moustache. He then sits with panache and pronounces “order order“,
This case is of course bound to be covered by the media as corona is indeed in everyone’s mind now, he knew this
No one keeps quiet until the judge says, “anyone who speaks shall be sent out.”
The defendant is Corona who is standing calmly and is unaffected by the million eyes glaring at it. The plaintiff(global citizens) have hired the best lawyer with a repute of not having lost a single case.
Amidst the crowd bursting at the seam, Anamika, a journalist who has been assigned the task of covering this case makes way for herself. She is sure this is an open and shut case where Corona will definitely be convicted.
Judge ; What are the charges??
Lawyer: Plenty, your honour
Judge to Corona: Do you want a lawyer for defense?
Corona: NO sir, I can defend myself
Lawyer :I present the first Witness “Children whose life was affected by Corona. I present their representative. A chubby child, who definitely looks like he has been served everything by his parents comes in.
He says, ” We cannot step out and play’
Everyone is watching him, especially the children.
Corona: Are you all obedient children who heed to your parent’s advice of maintaining basic hygiene like washing your hands ,not touching your face with soiled hands ? if so it is not likely that i would infect you my dear children .Hygiene was compromised so I spread rapidly (smiles)
Everyone is watching him.
The children are speechless and they walk away, looking down in shame.
Anamika reflects, “Cleanliness is next to Godliness. Corona has taught this lesson very effectively to the children. Not just children, but in fact to the whole world.
Second Witness youth representative- Our lives have come to a grinding halt, no party we are quarantined
Corona: I believed that youth are supposed to be in the pink of their health and I was expecting a better fight from your immune systems. But I guess majority of you are couch potatoes and binging on junk food, falling prey to bad habits which has weakened you all and I could infect a lot of you.(laughs) do you still think I am guilty?
Youth have a confused look
Anamika can”t help but thinking “Health is wealth” a forgotten proverb. She thinks of some binging and some even starving themselves, succumbing to anorexia. She hopes Gen Z takes their health seriously and mends their ways take up fitness and understand the importance of a healthy diet.
Third Witness: Education Department Official representative. A lady, who looks like a taskmaster and not a teacher at all walks in : ‘Our exam schedules are haywire , we are at out wit’s end due to the uncertainty looming large
Corona asks sarcastically: are exams the only way of assessing a child’s capability? I thought modern education systems had better alternatives to that?
Anamika secretly agrees with Corona that we must revamp our education system and not burden the children with the monotonous exams. In fact she feels Corona has watched bollywood hits like Taare Zameen Par and 3 Idiots and understood the true essence of those movies. It brings a smile on her face.
Education officials walk away, shell shocked
Fourth witness: Tourist: All our travel plans are ruined
Corona in a stern tone: Most travellers are indisciplined and leave a trail of trash in the exotic locales disturbing the delicate ecological balance. None of you wish to learn anything about the culture of the place, you just want to share photos on social media to boast to your friends. I did a favour by relieving those places of excessive footfalls I guess (Chuckles).
Anamika ponders, “man has destroyed the beauty of nature irresponsibly. Travelling to exotic places is a status symbol for many who boast about the same on Social media. The fiasco at Mount Everest is a chilling reminder of man’s recklessness. Anamika knows she is on the same page as Corona in this context but decides to keep her thoughts to herself.
Fifth Witness : Government Officials : Corona should be held responsible for the migrants exodus that caused chaos in major cities
Corona (in a sarcastic tone): My job was very easy in the congested, overcrowded cities. In fact I wondered why in the first place the cities house so many migrants?
Officials were dumbstruck
Anamika ponders “As you sow ,so you shall reap” The Government has not taken proper steps to provide employment opportunities in semi-urban and rural places to check the rapid and unscientific urbanization. The ill effects of this Is loud and clear : Delhi is left gasping for breath, The pristine lakes of Bengaluru are frothing and Chennai is marooned during rainy seasons etc etc
6 Religious leaders: Our daily routines and rituals are disrupted
Corono ( in a soft tone) I believe that God is one and He is supreme. I was impartial when I struck and did not discriminate on the basis of religion, caste, creed, race, colour, poor or rich. Do you still think I am guilty?
The religious leaders have no answer
Anamika is is reminded of the fact that God is love and love is God. She sadly thinks of the fact that it took a humanitarian crisis to make us understand that all humans are equal and we can tide over this crisis if we stand united. The undisputable truth is no discrimination is valid. She also wonders if this thought could help restore religious harmony and peace across the world??
Seventh Witness The world powers- Our economy has spiralled downwards and we face an uphill task to revive it
Corona has a broad smile on its face: I never thought I would get this far, in fact when I struck I thought I would be contained immediately. Thanks to your vested interests, you hid facts which helped my free run and I have a grip on the whole world. I owe my fame to you (bows)
World super powers are red faced and start the blame game which is stopped by the honourable judge who reminds them to maintain the decorum of the court.
Anamika rues “ Today’s super powers are indulging In a rat race and want to race ahead of each other and this has cost the whole world “ The universe runs on the principle that one who can exert the most evil on other creatures runs the show”
Now Corona gets bolder and requests the honourable judge to allow it to present a few witnesses who would speak in its favour
The crowd is left wondering Who on earth would speak in Corona”s favour?
A huge gang of all the creatures on earth walk in –“Your honour we have reclaimed our space in this earth. Man had invaded every inch of this earth and robed us of our rightful place in this world. Many of us have been tortured and caged up in zoos for his entertainment. Now it gives us immense pleasure to see Man’s desperate and helpless faces through the windows, caged in his own house. It is payback time .
Anamika almost chokes thinking karma it is.
Judge pronounces his verdict
Though Corona has inflicted huge losses upon this world, man was equally responsible for the current state of affairs. Orders that vaccines be found out to check corona and ample precautions are taken to check such pandemics in future.
Corona is acquitted and case is dismissed
To the dismay of the global citizens, corona walks free
Anamika can’t believe her ears. This is the time for introspection. We are dealing with an invisible but a formidable enemy Corona which though microscopic is capable of infecting millions. Hypothetically its spread could have been contained but for the vested interest of a few. The chinks in our armour stands exposed by Corona which has got the mighty super powers begging on their knees.
Now basic hygiene practices and ancient super foods for building immunity, which is often scoffed at by this generation must be adopted.
Irresponsible human behaviour which has destroyed the ecological balance and triggered human animal conflicts have to be reversed by taking drastic steps
Better town planning and forethinking could negate the ill effects of urbanization
Every cloud has a silver lining.
We know the earth is a survivor and will survive. It stayed with dinosaurs and without them. For us, the human beings to survive, we must make friends with the earth by understanding how to treat it.
It is time for all of us to turn Corona warriors. Salute the health officials, loosen your purse strings, be a good human being or at the least abide by the rules.
By then a popular song plays on one of the mobile phones which Anamika finds very relevant.
HEAL THE WORLD AND MAKE IT A BETTER PLACE FOR YOU AND FOR ME AND THE ENTIRE UNIVERSE
Story by Sapna Martin, a thinker and seeker of truth from Bangalore
Although uncertainty and fear dominate the headlines during the COVID-19 crisis, it’s good to take a moment to focus on the good in the world. No politics, no fear-mongering, no hatred, just people coming together to take care of one another at this very difficult time. Here are 16 examples of human kindness to remind you that, despite the unprecedented chaos and dread that this virus.
Once-crowded city streets are now empty. Highway traffic has slowed to a minimum. And fewer and fewer people can be found milling about outside.
‘I am fully aware of how much this crisis has impacted everyone on all fronts’
“You wash your hands, walk through the tunnel during which sprayers overhead sprinkle disinfectant and then get into the market. This can considerably reduce the amount of germs you carry into the market.”
In 2012, under the ‘Go Green with Tetra Pak’, the ‘Cartons Le Aao, Classroom Banao’ campaign was launched where waste Tetra Pak cartons were recycled to make benches which would be donated in government schools.
Brenda was almost halfway to the top of the tremendous granite cliff. She was standing on a ledge where she was taking a breather during this, her first rock climb. As she rested there, the safety rope snapped against her eye and knocked out one her contact lens. ‘Great’, she thought. ‘Here I am on a rock ledge, hundreds of feet from the bottom and hundreds of feet to the top of this cliff, and now my sight is blurry I will have to climb with one eye shut.’
“Our vision is to make good food and a holistic lifestyle easy for people. We want to develop and nurture a sense of purpose which is greener and more sustainable,” says Akshay, the co-founder.
Dropping every Sunday, 
In a competitive world, every aspiring mind has a different story to tell and behind every aspirant’s success, there is an interesting backstory which we are unheard of and Rohini Ghavri’s story is well and truly inspiring.
India’s 16-year-old woman cricketer Shafali Verma has shot to the top of ICC’s T20 batting rankings after a series of match winning performances at the ongoing T20 World Cup in Australia. In fact, she is now only the second Indian after Mithali Raj to top the women’s T20 batting rankings. Verma is the third highest scorer at the World Cup and has hit more sixes than anyone in the tournament so far.
“Love and kindness are never wasted. They always make a difference. They bless the one who receives them, and they bless you, the giver.” – Barbara De Angelis
As a mother of two, 24-year-old Rajshree from Andur village in Osmanabad, Maharashtra, was at her wit’s end. Her children, aged 3 and 5, were falling sick almost routinely every two or three weeks. The nature of the ailments was common, and the parents were incurring heavy medical expenditure.
The eco-friendly fuel alternative made from plastic can be used can be used to fuel generators, industrial boilers, and furnaces, among others.
There is a story in the Mahabharata. Once Sri Krishna and the five Pandava brothers went hunting in the forest. By the time they had finished the hunt, the sun had gone down and night was about to fall. They realized that they couldn’t return to the kingdom that day and decided to spend the night in the forest. A cave was found and it was agreed that each person would stand guard for two hours while the others slept.
The students are also involved in waste management activities in the village – maintaining bamboo waste bins by the roadside.
Tony Meléndez, who was born with no arms, will perform two concerts on Jan. 21 at Holy Name Catholic Church in Ebensburg.
Anand Mahindra recently took to Twitter to share a video Captain Tania Shergill leading an all men contingent at Army Day Parade.
A 21-year-old from Sleaford in Lincolnshire who lives with cerebral palsy, has become the latest driver to join Team BRIT – the most inspirational team in motorsport.
The Taoists have a famous teaching about an empty boat that rams into your boat in the middle of a river. While you probably wouldn’t be angry at an empty boat, you might well become enraged if someone were at its helm.
Other than this, his organisation is installing unique, innovative toilets in rural India. Installed at 50 places, these toilets are made of fiberglass discarded by the windmill industry — killing two birds with one stone. Find out how.
In 2019 we have read a lot of stories about entrepreneurs who have given a vast amount to help developing countries and impoverished people across the global. Not only are the mega wealthy helping out but also medium sized business owners, families and successful individuals. The trend of philanthropy can be seen across the globe but most notably we read a story about a very generous, considerate and intelligent Canadian businessman who is helping people in his own country.
Dogs are super cute and loyal and loving and caring and funny and.. OK, stop me! And koalas are adorable! Can you imagine having these two at home?
Across business, culture, society and the environment, we shine the spotlight on 100 inspiring people and exciting projects that are driving progress, giving reasons for optimism in the year and decade ahead
It’s been a turbulent year, with wildfires raging in the Amazon and elsewhere, and a divisive election campaign stoking tensions at home. But there have been plenty of positives this year, too. From a renewable energy tipping point to the legalisation of same-sex marriage, we take a look at the good.
Antonio La Cava, a retired school teacher, transformed his 3-wheeler into a tiny mobile library to spread the joy of books to children in the remote places of Italy.
Once, a division of the Japanese army was engaged in a sham battle, and some of the officers found it necessary to make their headquarters in Gasan’s temple.
Researchers engineered a strain of E. coli bacteria that can consume carbon dioxide and turn it into energy. The synthetic life-form could someday help combat climate change.
Strong policy instruments and good implementation did the trick for South Korea’s capital
Since being shared a few hours back, the tweet has warmed up hearts of many.
Seeing the chair as help, the cat visibly scared hesitated for a while, then finally mustered the courage and took a plunge and sat on the chair, as the man carefully lowered it.
I hate playing Secret Santa. You know why? Because my friends are just the worst who think it is funny to gift me a bar of soap for Christmas. I’m not even kidding! But do you know who absolutely loves Secret Santa and ended up receiving THE BEST gifts ever? A woman named Shelby whose Secret Santa ended up being Co-Founder of Microsoft, Bill Gates!
With plastic pollution having exploded in public awareness, companies are having to urgently rethink how they package their products. As the gift-giving season approaches, we find out how some brands are leading the way with sustainable packaging, and we share some tips to help you reduce your impact at Christmas too
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Badrinarayan Temple authorities in Surat have installed solar panels to consume less electricity. The panels are placed on one side of the temple on the terrace. They have decided to use the amount saved to build a Sanskrit college and school.
When 
Sharing positive news 