| | | | | Good morning, This week brought some temporary relief from the soaring temperature, with rainfall in several parts of the country. But why was this summer so hard and was it in fact different from the usual summer heat?
Tanvi Deshpande looks at data from India's meteorological department and finds that it's not just anecdotal, this year had more instances of weather stations recording temperatures above 45 degree Celsius than in any year in the past decade. Worse still, climate change is increasing the chances of a repeat of such heatwaves. | | | One of Asia's largest freshwater lakes, Wular, in Kashmir, is shrinking. Umer Ahmed looks into the reasons for this, and reports from Bandipora on the impacts on those dependent on the lake for their livelihood. "Five years from now, I don't see how we will survive. Our lives depend on this lake," 28-year old Shakeel Ahmed told him. Read the story to know what is being done to save the lake and whether it's going to be enough. | | | You must have read or heard about Monkeypox, a disease, which, like Covid-19, came to humans from animals. It has been endemic in some countries in Africa, but has recently spread rapidly in North America and Europe, creating fears of a larger spread. But infectious diseases expert Ishwar Gilada, a consultant for HIV and sexually transmitted diseases, tells Govindraj Ethiraj, that we already have a vaccine and a treatment--the smallpox vaccine that stopped being administered since the eradication of the disease. We need to start producing it again, and administer it within four days of a patient showing symptoms. Read the full interview here. | | | May 25 was World Schizophrenia Day. To dispel myths around the disease, Divyani Dubey of Factchecker.in put together six misconceptions that stigmatise patients of this mental disorder. Many women who have begun to use or have tried using safe menstrual products, do not discontinue use of unsafe methods like cloth or make-do pads stuffed with ash, husk or even sand, revealed an analysis of National Family Health Surveys. On Menstrual Hygiene Day, FactChecker took a deep dive into official data to see the state of menstrual hygiene in India and its impact on education and health. | | | Shreya Khaitan Senior Writer and Editor
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