Curious Tourist

I have been to several National Parks in India primarily in search of the elusive big cat called the Tiger. It's always lovely to witness wild animals in their natural habitat but it becomes all the more special when one of those animals happens to be a Tiger! Here I am going to share with you 10 points that you should keep in mind before booking that Jungle Safari in India. These points encompass my 12 years of traveling experience in the wild and all the Tiger wisdom I have gained over the years. A Tiger with his catch, Bijrani Zone, Corbett Tiger Reserve, Uttarakhand 1. Select a National Park that has maximum density as well as maximum number of tigers as per most recent Tiger Census data from National Tiger Conservation Authority & Wildlife Institute of India. I spotted my first Tiger finally at Corbett Tiger Reserve as it had 231 Tigers at that time(in February of 2021)- the highest number of tigers anywhere in India. So Corbett National Park is the first choice. 2. If i

 A Mysterious Step Well in the heart of Delhi The black well is said to hypnotize the viewer and attracts the person towards itself. Many have died but their deaths were termed either "Accidents" or "Suicides"- nobody knows. Even the Rickshaw driver warned me that there are spirits or ghosts roaming around in this grim place. Surprisingly, there were no pigeons or dogs or cows that are usual inhabitants in any "Touristy" place. To make me more circumspect, there was no ticket counter as if the tourism department itself knew something was creepy about this place. I also felt the cold as I descended into the well and my heartbeat quickened as I approached the black well. Although the place was full of tourists on a bright Saturday afternoon, it was rather quiet and eerie.  How & Why I got scared in this beautiful STEP WELL? Well, you would have to visit the place yourself instead of relying on third party accounts. Many people use and cash on such clickb

In a remote village situated on the banks of the Yamuna, a young boy named Raju from a Pachayat School was persuading his community members not to defecate in the open. He had a spark in his eyes, a constant smile on his face and an indomitable desire to bring about a meaningful change in his village. The above story is one among many others that are transforming and reimagining India. The honourable Prime Minister has given a vision for creating a New India by 2022 when India would complete 75 years of its independence. In this context, Niti Aayog- the premier think tank of the country, has come up with the Strategy for New India. The success of this strategy is incumbent upon the active participation of fellow citizens in socio-economic development and also upon their pro-activeness in upholding the constitutional ideals especially the Fundamental duties as enshrined in Article 51A of the Indian Constitution. In this essay, we will understand the nature and definition of New

My letter to Mission Director, Atal Innovation Mission Dear Sir, Hope you are doing good.  I am a Mentor in a school in Delhi. I have written many articles, held conferences on the success of ATL model and how it's helping foster entrepreneurship and innovation among school children. However in the last 6 months, many Delhi schools have faced a lot of problems. Most of the issues are arising due to severe paucity of funds and its becoming difficult to conduct workshops and procuring equipment for labs. Please consider following issues- 1. An amount of Rs. 2 lakhs is expected each year for an ATL school but my school did not receive this grant in 2018 and 2019(currrent year) 2. There is a technical glitch in BharatKosh portal- school has deposited the interest but the amount is still showing in PFMS account even though school has no funds left. Hence school auditor is unable to audit the second financial year(2018) and PFMS uploading can't be done.  3. School ATL Incharges

A Journey Towards Change! Atal Tinkering Fest at School   I have been mentoring students of Ryan International School, Mayur Vihar since 6 months. It has been an overwhelming yet enriching experience for me to see the budding innovators tweaking, failing, learning and finally succeeding at their prototypes. I have realized that my primary role in this journey is to inculcate in them the values and life skills required to become a successful entrepreneur. I facilitate the sessions in Q&A dialogue form so that they think independently and come up with solutions themselves. I have been able to nurture in them many useful traits such as compassion, perseverance, courage, critical thinking etc. My students have surprised me with their talent, curiosity and never-give-up attitude. They have in fact made me a better human being. We are using Design Thinking(DT) approach (5 stages of design thinking- Empathize, Define, Ideate, Prototype and Test) . DT was adapted for busi

A revolutionary innovation event called 'Tinkering Fest' is happening in many schools all across India. It is a brainchild of Atal Innovation Mission(AIM), NITI Aayog,  Government of India. Atal Tinkering Labs have been set up under AIM in more than 2000 schools that aim to foster creativity and technological innovation among students using design thinking(DT) approach.  DT was adapted for business purposes by David M Kelley, a professor at Stanford University, who also founded the design consultancy IDEO   in 1991. IDEO further popularized the DT concept for solving specific business problems. A design mindset is not problem-focused, it is solution focused and action oriented towards creating a preferred future.  Students actively involved in the Atal Tinkering Lab(ATL) at Ryan International School(RIS), Delhi were given a summer assignment in which they had to think about and reflect upon the general problems in society that bother them. Many students used to vi

I was never sure about what I really wanted from life and what my true purpose was, so I started to explore myself and the world around me. One thing that I was sure of was my innate curiosity to learn just about anything new that came my way. Another thing that I knew I had was the ability to work hard and get my hands dirty. So it was hardly surprisingly that I was good or rather excellent in whatever I did. This made the search for my purpose even harder as I lost myself in the inebriation of curiosity, trying one thing after another and then another. My ravenous mind was never at peace with one thing and it always wanted exciting adventures to embark on, new paths to trek on and a new summit to climb on. I threw myself in all kinds of jobs, internships, fellowships and what not! Before graduating as an engineer, I had already worked as a researcher, a writer, a marketing intern as well as an analyst. My stints in all these roles definitely piqued my interest but the problem was