Anganwadi Workers in Ladakh and J&K: Dedicated Service, Yet Low Wages

Anganwadi workers, commonly known as Bau in Kargil and other parts of Ladakh, play a crucial role in India’s Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS). These frontline workers are responsible for ensuring nutrition, health, and early childhood education for underprivileged children, pregnant women, and lactating mothers. However, despite their dedication, the salary of Anganwadi workers in Ladakh and Jammu & Kashmir remains significantly lower compared to other states in India.

The Rol...

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Healthcare in Kargil: What Needs to Change?

For the past few days, I have been at District Hospital Kargil, spending most of my nights with a family member who is admitted there. During this time, I closely observed many things—some that reflect the dedication of our healthcare workers and others that highlight serious issues that need immediate attention.

One of the most reassuring aspects was seeing the doctors and hospital staff working tirelessly, even late at night. Their dedication to patient care is truly commendable, and th...

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لداخ میں موسمیاتی تبدیلی: ماحولیات اور عوام کے لیے سنگین خطرہ

لداخ، جو اپنی برف پوش وادیوں، دلکش پہاڑوں، اور شدید سردیوں کے لیے جانا جاتا تھا، اب موسمیاتی تبدیلیوں کے شدید اثرات کا سامنا کر رہا ہے۔ ایک وقت تھا جب فروری کے مہینے میں کرگل شہر میں کم از کم ایک سے دو فیٹ برف پڑتی تھی، جبکہ دراس، سانکو، اور سورو جیسے بالائی علاقے چار فٹ سے بھی زیادہ برف میں ڈھکے رہتے تھے۔ مقامی لوگوں کے لیے برفباری ایک عام اور متوقع مظہر تھا۔ فروری اورمارچ میں”کھس ہرژیس” کہلانے والا برفباری کاسلسلہ ہر دوسرے ہفتے جاری رہتا تھا۔

مگر اب حالات بالکل بدل چکے ہیں۔ پچھلے چند سا...

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Book Review: Unwithering Flames Series

Publisher: Green Palm Publications
Volumes: 10 (and counting)

Introduction

Unwithering Flames is a compelling series published by Green Palm Publications, an Iranian publisher dedicated to translating and preserving valuable Persian works. The series consists of ten books (with more expected), each chronicling the love stories of Iranian martyrs and their wives, set against the backdrop of war and revolution. These memoirs are deeply moving, offering readers an intimate look into the pe...

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The Hidden Toll of Beauty Obsession: How ‘Beauty Sickness’ Holds Women Back

Most of us must not have heard of the word beauty sickness, but if you are a woman, there’s a good chance you have felt beauty sickness. If you have thought about staying home instead of attending an important event because you didn’t think you looked good enough, that was beauty sickness.

Beauty sickness is what happens when a woman’s emotional energy gets so bound up with what she sees in the mirror that it becomes harder for her to see other aspects of her life due to the constant urge...

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Official language – Editorial

The language dilemma once again sparked a heated discourse among different factions in Ladakh. A proposal was put forward suggesting that English, Hindi, Urdu, and Bhoti be made the official languages of Ladakh. Meanwhile, various linguistic groups in the region engaged in intense debates, presenting different suggestions for the official language.

A faction in Leh has proposed making “Bhoti” the official language of Ladakh, arguing that it is spoken by the majority of the region’s popula...

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139 More Government Schools in Ladakh at Risk of Shutting Down

The education for the poor section will become so expensive in Ladakh that many will succumb to the system, and the number of left-out students may increase. Neither am I a conspiracy theorist, nor am I a soothsayer. But empirical evidence about the government in Ladakh is not a good sign for society. UDISE data 2023-24 reports that Ladakh has identified 35 zero-enrollment schools, 21 schools with teachers that have zero enrollments, and 83 schools with single teachers. Consolidating all the...

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Book Review: Imperial Games in Tibet by Dilip Sinha

Dilip Sinha, a former Indian diplomat, wrote Imperial Games in Tibet: The Struggle for Statehood and Sovereignty. This outstanding scholarly study, which is founded on a great deal of archival research, provides a concise overview of how Tibet, a country that was conquered by a powerful neighbour and abandoned by the international community, became involved in the imperial intrigues that were taking place in the high Himalayas. Even India, Tibet’s long-time ally, failed the Tibetans when the...

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The Downfall of Assad: Possible Implications

The Middle East looks engulfed in a never-ending war fury. The two main factors responsible are its geostrategic location and diversified sectarian plurality. Though it appears that the region is going to lose its relevance in geopolitics on account of phasing out of fossil fuels and attention of world powers shifting towards Indo-Pacific region but it’s power of connecting and regulating East and West is going to wade unlikely. The region will continue to be chaotic until the emergence of g...

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A real conversation about things nobody tells you about college life

By: Tsering Gaphel and Padma Angmo

Dear readers,

If you are reading this, chances are the topic sparked your curiosity, and you are wondering what it is all about. Don’t worry—you are not alone. We would have also chosen to read this article if we were still in college. We were just as lost and confused as you are now when we first joined our colleges. But here is the secret we learned through our own experience with college life: nobody knows what they are doing.

Sure, some student...

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