India celebrates Diwali under shadow of Covid and air pollution

Posted on November 4, 2021 by Admin

Celebrations back in full swing for first time since pandemic began but many fear festival will bring fresh surge

It is the festival that celebrates the triumph of light over darkness, and this year Diwali held a special significance for India as it got back into full swing for the first time since the coronavirus pandemic began.

Oil lamps lit up windows, shops, homes and monuments across the capital, Delhi, and devotees gathered at temples and shrines, as excitement over the festival, severely dampened last year by Covid-19, gripped the country once more.

Diwali: Hindu festival of lights celebrations – in pictures

Posted on November 4, 2021 by Admin

Diwali is one of the most popular festivals in Hinduism and is celebrated by Hindus all over the world. It is also known as the festival of lights

All change: India’s railways bring back tea in clay cups in bid to banish plastics

Posted on December 3, 2020 by Admin

Stations switch to humble earthen kulhads in move to cut down on toxic waste and boost incomes of village potters

A small and humble relic from India’s past is about to stage a major comeback. At all 7,000 railway stations in the country, tea will be served in earthen cups known as kulhads.

The kulhads, redolent of a bygone pastoral era, are unpainted, unglazed and have no handles, but are perfectly biodegradable and environment-friendly, which is why the country’s railways minister, Piyush Goyal, has said they will replace plastic cups as part of the government’s goal of making India free of single-use plastic.

Non-Christian faiths welcome Christmas easing of Covid rules

Posted on November 25, 2020 by Admin

Religious leaders pleased that Christians will not experience ‘same disappointment’ they did

Representatives of faiths that have been unable to gather for religious festivals this year because of the pandemic have welcomed the fact that Christians will not have to experience “the same disappointment and deflation” they did.

The Muslim festivals of Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha, the Jewish holy days of Passover, Rosh Hashanah (the Jewish new year) and Yom Kippur, and Diwali festival of lights celebrated by Hindus, Sikhs and Jains were among those hit by lockdown restrictions, with people forbidden to worship together or join family and friends to mark the occasions. Easter was also affected last spring.