I guess bad habits in development take a very long time to unlearn. Even in the face of the direst of warnings. I know that last year, when taken completely by surprise, Kerala rose to the occasion. It appeared that a new civil society had come to being around the flood rescue and relief work, … Continue reading After Kavalappara: Is the Future that of Ecological Patriotism? →
After the Berlin wall fell in 1989 and the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991, many consigned ideologies and alternatives to the rubble of history. The end of the cold war was explained as the victory, not just of liberal ethos and individual freedom, but of dynamic, market-driven capitalism championed by likes of Ronald Reagan, Margaret … Continue reading Alternative Futures – India Unshackled →
Guest post by NAGRAJ ADVE This post is the second part, excerpted and slightly adapted, from the booklet by Nagraj Adve, Global Warming in the Indian Context: An Introductory Overview (Ecologise Hyderabad 2019). The first part appeared in Kafila on 1 July 2019 While the earlier post covered the basic science of global warming, the … Continue reading Effects of Climate Change are not Contained within Nations – The Impact on India: Nagraj Adve →
Till just the other day, they were committing suicide, while some of them were demonstrating in Jantar Mantar, Delhi, humiliating themselves by disrobing and eating rats, trying in vain to draw the attention of the political establishment to their plight. And to pour salt on their wounds, BJP leaders were saying that committing suicide had … Continue reading The Kisan Charter – ‘Farmers are not just a residue from our past but int
Guest post by SAJAN VENNIYOOR If you key in “remote island” on Google, most of the news stories it throws up are about an unfortunate and very dead young man named John Allen Chau. If you type in “remote Indian island”, Google will take you immediately to North Sentinel Island. We are all, by now, … Continue reading Remote Islands, Savage Tribes: Sajan Venniyoor →
Guest post by PRAVEEN VERMA Does it amaze you when you hear the stories of poverty and success in same sentence? Does it amaze us when we hear the stories of some of the best sports-persons and the hardship they have dealt with before and throughout their careers? Does it amaze us when we hear … Continue reading Beneath the glitter – Looking at The Asian Games : Praveen Verma →
Dear Comrade I write to you as a citizen, so unlike the many eulogies and appeals you have received recently, this will not be sugar-coated. You have received much praise, which is indeed well-deserved. But most of us have done, and are still doing, our duty well, but there is no need to indulge in … More Restore Our Vision of the Future: A Letter to the Kerala Chief Minister
This is a guest post by ROBY RAJAN Epic. Biblical. Apocalyptic. These are some of the words that have been used to describe the floods and landslides that have wreaked havoc in Kerala over the last few weeks. Entire towns and cities were submerged, and entire rivers altered their courses overnight. Over the years Malayalis … Continue reading Brackish Reflections on the Great Deluge of 2018: Roby Rajan
Kerala is the land of my birth, and my life is intertwined closely and inseparably with the lives of all fellow-Malayalis. I will respect and remember this truth and will never think of my life as totally unrelated to nature, my neighbours, and the government that we elect to rule us. I vow to … Continue reading A National Pledge for Kerala after the Great Deluge of 2018
By now everyone knows what the Sanghis, probably not just outside Kerala, but also inside, have been up to when others were battling the deluge, saving lives, working round the clock to organize relief: making Lord Ayappan look like a stupid brat (or, actually, painting him in their likeness), spreading idiotic claims that only the … Continue reading A List of Little-Knowledge Theories about Kerala in the Wake of this Disaster
