Much before the Indian parliament promulgated the Right to Education Act (RTE) in 2009 that guaranteed education to all a committed local teacher had already pioneered the idea of making school access a reality for hundreds of underprivileged children, irrespective of their social status or economic background.


An equal-opportunity school sets a sterling example in social integration (IANS Special Series)


IANS Automatic

It's time for vazhaipoo (banana flower) fritters. Vazhaipoo cutlets and vadas have become passe, said a top chef at the newly-opened Novotel Chennai Chamiers Road.


Of vazhaipoo fritters and a chef's contribution to reducing carbon footprint (Foodie Trail-Chennai)


Hardly has any novel been awaited with as much curiosity and anticipation in recent times as Vikram Seths sequel to the monumental "A Suitable Boy" (1993). Five years on, since he was first expected to deliver the manuscript, the novel is still to see the light of the day. But what seems like a saga of missed deadlines can very well -- far from our eyes -- be a masterpiece in the making.


In search of a suitable girl (June 20 is writer Vikram Seth's 66th Birthday)


Construction of Rohtang tunnel, one of the world's most challenging motorable projects at 3,000 metres above sea level and which will provide an all-season connectivity to the landlocked Lahaul Valley from here in Himachal Pradesh, may be completed by 2020.


Rohtang tunnel to be open for traffic by 2020 (Lead, Correcting headline)


With food stalls lining the streets, devotees queuing up outside eateries and plates full of food passed among families and friends, the whole of Kolkata turns into a giant food court during Durga Puja. While the five-day festivities get over in the wink of an eye, the city now has its maiden Durga Puja-themed restaurant ready to serve gastronomes round the year.


Flavours of festivity in first Durga Puja-themed restaurant (Foodie Trail: Kolkata)


Inside a dimly-lit classroom in this district, with its walls decorated with drawings and paintings made by children, Seema Yadav, 36, is teaching a group of 25 girls who are sitting in a circle in one corner. These are girls who were either never enrolled in school or had to drop out due to various reasons. They are now way behind academically compared to other students of their age.


Seema's story: Educating girls to negotiate life, become change agents (IANS Special Series)


The London edition of Indias popular Jaipur Literature Festival "ZEE JLF at The British Library" has kicked off, filling the historic spaces of Londons iconic literary venue and welcoming over 100 eminent authors and thinkers from across the globe.


ZEE JLF kicks off at London's The British Library


What began as a gift from a friend 40 years ago has now snowballed into an extensive collection of over 5,000 pankhas (handheld fans) for eminent Indian artist Jatin Das. A carefully-curated part of this staggering collection, along with numerous prints, photographs, documentaries and paintings is currently open for public viewing at Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts (IGNCA) here.


Down the memory lane: Jatin Das exhibits diverse pankha collection


A marriage is not just about the bride and the groom, asserts mythologist Devdutt Pattanaik who has done considerable work on ancient Indian scriptures. In fact, according to him, it has always had a much larger connotation than what is normally perceived of it.


Journey into marriage is about 'we', away from it is about 'me': Writer Devdutt Pattanaik (IANS Interview)


A wide range of books and scholarly readings on Mahatma Gandhi will be published by the India office of Oxford University Press (OUP) to mark his 150th birth anniversary.


New series of books to mark Gandhi's 150th birth anniversary


Olga Tokarczuk, a 56-year-old bestselling author from Poland, has won the prestigious Man Booker International Prize for her novel "Flights," which deals with travels in the 21st century and human anatomy.


Polish writer wins Man Booker International Prize (Roundup)


When we talk about advertising potential on Facebook, the fact is that 2.2 billion global users -- almost a quarter of the world's population -- constitute the largest marketplace on Earth that can be explored better with intelligent communication and targeted, age-specific outreach.


Why Facebook is suddenly bullish on Indian smartphone consumers (Tech Trend)


Picture this: Seated inside a dimly lit eatery in a remote village of Himachal Pradesh and gorging on falafel and shakshuka, traditional Israeli dishes. That's Pulga for you - a 24-hour bus ride from the national capital followed by a 40-minute hike.


Pulga: Of unmatched beauty and Israeli food up in the Himalayas (Travelogue)


Up above the hills, where a forest of nodding flowers and an endless valley of Himalayan mountains paint the sky, lives one of India's most-loved writers -- Ruskin Bond.


My stories belong as much to my readers as they belong to me: Ruskin Bond (May 19 is Bond's 84 birthday)


Of all the states in India, West Bengal stands apart as a rich and vibrant land of people with shared customs and tastes. If history stands testimony to the everlasting sea of stories, music and art that have evolved in Bengal and made a mark not only in India but globally, the very streets of the state resonate with a shared love for its cultural heritage.


Selected offerings to celebrate all things Bengali


She's a trained Kathak dancer who has performed around the world, runs an institute that's training 300 underprivileged children in the arts and passionately believes the dance form is a powerful tool to raise societal awareness about burning issues of the day.


Danseuse Rekha Mehra spreads societal awareness through Kathak (Arts Feature)


Forty-four-year-old Sridevi Balasubramanian -- popularly known as Shri Bala in the hospitality circuit -- juggles effortlessly between the worlds of numbers and commercial kitchens.


This CA doesn't cook books, but tasty Tamil dishes (Foodie Trail-Chennai)


A wide swath of the millennia-old Indian civilization came alive through a cluster of artefacts of astonishing brilliance as the National Museum opened a nearly two-month transcontinental exhibition that takes the viewers on an intriguing and exhilarating trip of the countrys spectacular past and its links with the outside world since antiquity.


Pioneering exhibition on Indian civilisation on display at National Museum


Since childhood, I have had a keen interest in the arts -- coming from a family with a strong tradition in arts and crafts, this was not surprising. Growing up, I visited museums and emporiums on customary school trips and saw a lot of it in my home and family-run stores.


How art found me and the upsurge in opportunities (Shifting Sands of Culture series)


WWE fights may be flashy, hard and violent at times but the first Indian woman to get into that ring at the international level has beaten bigger odds at home to reach there.


Wearing salwar-suits, Indian mother takes to international WWE ring (IANS Special Series)


It was past 10 in the night. Four pyres were aflame at Manikarnika Ghat on the banks of the Ganga here. Gagan Choudhary, a corpse burner, was shifting from one pyre to another as the air reeked of burning flesh and wood -- tinged with alcohol, tobacco and cannabis.

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