iVolunteer Blog - everything about volunteeringSWAR Fellow at Mount Valley Development Association, Uttarakhand.
A few months ago, during the Panchayati Raj elections in Uttarakhand, I witnessed something that stayed with me long after the celebrations ended. Watching the election process closely was both interesting and deeply thought-provoking. On paper, it appeared to be a positive sign for gender representation. Many women were contesting for the position of Pradhan […]
When I first started visiting the project villages for surveys, I did not expect the experience to change my perspective so deeply. I went there to collect data and understand ground realities. What I found was far more powerful than numbers on a sheet. In the mountain regions, almost every woman is engaged in farming. […]
Here’s a small story from the hills of Uttarakhand. For the past few months at my workplace in Uttarakhand, we had been facing recurring water shortages. Almost every month, the water supply would stop for four to five days. Our only reliable source was the pipeline connection. There is also a dhara (a natural spring), […]
Sometimes, the most meaningful conversations happen with people we have never met before. There is something unexpectedly beautiful about speaking to someone who knows nothing about your background, your achievements, or your struggles. In that brief moment, you are simply two human beings sharing space and words. I remember a random conversation while returning home […]
I still remember my very first solo travel. The nervous excitement, the heavy bag on my shoulders, and the endless stream of thoughts in my mind. It felt like stepping into the unknown, where every small decision carried a weight I had never experienced before. Finding the right bus, asking strangers for directions, figuring out […]
Today, while thinking about which everyday Uttarakhand product I could write about, my eyes stopped at a simple Bhimal basket kept in my room. I use it daily without thinking about where it came from or who made it. That small moment made me curious. I wanted to understand the journey of the tree behind […]
तुम रुकती क्यों नहीं हो…?🌊 क्या कभी थकान तुम्हें भी छू जाती है, या फिर तुमने थकना सीखा ही नहीं? तुम्हारी हर लहर मानो अपनी ही कोई कहानी लेकर उठती है, कभी शोर मचाकर, कभी बिल्कुल खामोश रहकर; पर हर बार कुछ न कुछ अपने साथ बहा ही ले जाती है, टूटे सपने, अधूरी बातें,और […]
सुनो… कुछ लिखा है तुम्हारे लिए 🌄 सुना है लोग तुम तक पहुँचने के लिएबड़े-बड़े सपने,कई योजनाएँ बनाते हैं, पर क्या उन्हें पता है…तुम तक पहुँचने के लिए सिर्फ रास्ते ही नहीं होते… तुम सुंदर हो,कठिन भी,और गहरे भी। तुम्हारे हर मोड़ पर साँस ठहर जाती है, और हौसला बार-बार परखा जाता है। नीचे से […]
Have you ever been to a place where time seems to pause? That is exactly how I felt when I visited Gangi, the last village of Tehri Garhwal in Uttarakhand. Tucked away in the high mountains, Gangi is beautiful, raw, and untouched, almost as if the world outside has forgotten it. I spent six hours […]
Some moments in life come quietly, yet they leave behind an echo that stays with us long after. During a baseline survey in a small village of Tehri Garhwal, under a project by Mount Valley Development Association, I experienced one such moment. Field visits are usually busy, structured, and full of tasks. There are questionnaires […]
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