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News18
3 days ago
- News18
More Than Ganga Jal: Two Children On Kanwar Yatra Carry Hope To End Fathers' Addiction, Free Mothers
Last Updated: Both Rohit, 13, and Nitesh, 12 - are walking this sacred route to free their fathers from alcohol addiction and to save their mothers from years of domestic violence. Not the lure of wealth, success, or even the promise of a better career – it was a silent plea, one born not of ambition but of anguish, that pushed two boys from a remote village in Uttar Pradesh's Prayagraj district to embark upon the grueling 130-kilometre-long Kanwar Yatra. Both Rohit, 13, and Nitesh, 12 – barefoot, carrying Kanwars on their tiny shoulders – are walking this sacred route not for personal blessings, but for one heartfelt wish: to free their fathers from alcohol addiction and to save their mothers from years of domestic violence that has shattered their childhoods. Amid the massive saffron wave of Kanwariyas marching across Uttar Pradesh this year – part of an expected 6-crore strong pilgrimage – these two boys stand out not for their chants, but for their silence. Their eyes reflect not excitement, but endurance. Their feet, cracked from miles of walking, are still steady—fueled not by ritual, but by resolve. Rohit Prajapati, 13, is no stranger to this path. This is his second Kanwar Yatra. He is walking to the Kashi Vishwanath temple in Varanasi, carrying Ganga jal he collected with devotion. 'My father used to drink and smoke ganja," Rohit says. 'He beat my mother and then left us. We haven't seen him at home for five or six years. I'm walking so that Bholenath changes his heart – so he comes back to us, a better man. I also pray that we become strong enough to build our own house some day." Rohit's words carry the weight of someone much older – a child forced by circumstance to shoulder burdens beyond his age. Walking beside him is 12-year-old Nitesh Prajapati, undertaking the Kanwar Yatra for the first time. Like Rohit, his home life has been consumed by fear and uncertainty. 'My father also drinks and beats my mother," Nitesh says. 'When we try to stop him, he hits us too. Now he's gone to Mumbai. I'm walking so that he stops drinking. I want him to become a good person." Despite their tender age and painful pasts, the boys speak with calm clarity. They do not complain. They walk. Faith in the Face of Fear The Kanwar Yatra, which began on July 11 this year, is an annual pilgrimage undertaken by millions of Lord Shiva's devotees during the month of Shravan. Devotees – known as Kanwariyas – carry sacred water from the Ganges and offer it at Shiva temples. This year, the yatra is witnessing unprecedented participation, including a surge in women devotees. Yet, amid the music-blaring DJ vans, loud chants, and celebratory fervour, the quiet suffering of Rohit and Nitesh tells another story – of how faith is sometimes the last refuge for children battling the demons inside their own homes. The boys are accompanied by a local elder, Chintamani, who ensures their safety during halts. They eat simple food, rest under tarpaulins or in temple courtyards, and wake before dawn to continue their journey. 'They don't talk much," Chintamani says. 'They just walk. They're determined. Their hearts are in this." The Hidden Scars of Addiction In rural India, addiction to alcohol and drugs is not uncommon, but the impact it leaves – especially on women and children – often goes unnoticed and unaddressed. With limited access to rehabilitation centres, domestic abuse reporting mechanisms, or legal support, families are often left to suffer in silence. 'These children are walking not just a spiritual path, but an emotional one," says Meena Jaiswal, a social worker based in eastern Uttar Pradesh. 'What they're doing is extraordinary – but it also reflects how deep the crisis is. When kids turn to God because there's no one else to hear them, we, as a society, must ask ourselves where we've failed." Jaiswal stresses that religious faith is not a substitute for state intervention. 'It's beautiful that they believe in Mahadev. But what they really need is support, safety, and healing." top videos View all A Cry Society Must Hear As Uttar Pradesh ramps up Kanwar Yatra logistics – including women-centric safety measures, health camps, and traffic controls – the stories like Rohit and Nitesh's often go unheard. There are no special cells for children of alcoholics, no counselling stalls for those seeking emotional refuge. Yet, here they are – walking, praying, hoping. Their voices may be small, but their journey echoes loudly: not all pilgrims come seeking more. Some come hoping for less – less pain, less fear, less silence at home. However, unlike other Shiv devotees, for Rohit and Nitesh, what is certain is their belief – not just in Lord Shiva, but in the possibility of change. 'If Baba helps my father stop drinking, I'll walk every year," says Nitesh. 'Even if my feet hurt," he adds. Get breaking news, in-depth analysis, and expert perspectives on everything from politics to crime and society. Stay informed with the latest India news only on News18. Download the News18 App to stay updated! tags : domestic violence Kanwar yatra view comments Location : Lucknow, India, India First Published: July 16, 2025, 12:57 IST News india More Than Ganga Jal: Two Children On Kanwar Yatra Carry Hope To End Fathers' Addiction, Free Mothers Disclaimer: Comments reflect users' views, not News18's. Please keep discussions respectful and constructive. Abusive, defamatory, or illegal comments will be removed. News18 may disable any comment at its discretion. By posting, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
India Gazette
30-06-2025
- Sport
- India Gazette
"I enjoy playing gold medal matches": Nitesh Kumar leads India at 2025 Asian Para-Badminton Championship
By Diptayan Hazra Karnal (Haryana) [India], June 30 (ANI): India delivered its best-ever performance at the Asian Para-Badminton Championship 2025 in Thailand, returning home with an impressive haul of 27 medals, four golds, 10 silvers, and 13 bronzes. The standout performer was Paris Paralympic gold medalist Nitesh Kumar, who clinched a remarkable three gold medals, underlining his dominance and composure under pressure. Speaking about the mental aspect of competing in gold-medal matches, Nitesh shared insights into how he has evolved with experience, 'It's not a lot of difference for me, but of course, sometimes when things don't work our way, we start to doubt ourselves. That pressure of coming so close and losing the gold medal gets into your head and things get very difficult.''Over the years, playing so many finals, I just prepare myself not to get overexcited or not to get too much ahead of time and just focus point by point and then winning it. So yeah, I think it adds on to some pressure, but I actually enjoy playing the gold medal matches now because there's a lot of mental thing involved and then just fighting. I think that brings the best form out of it,' he added. The medal tally not only set a new benchmark but also marked India's return to the continental stage after an eight-year gap. Reflecting on the journey, Nitesh said, 'It was a very good tournament and a great result for us. The last edition was in 2016, I don't remember the exact count but that was actually my second international tournament, and I lost in the quarterfinals.' 'We missed an edition due to COVID, and now coming back with 27 medals is a massive achievement. Personally, I feel we could've done slightly better with the number of gold medals but overall, the team environment was positive, competitive, and supportive, which made this campaign very fruitful. We'll look to build on this for future championships,' he noted. In the men's doubles SL3-SL4 category, Nitesh paired up with Sukant Kadam. The duo battled through a thrilling final against fellow Indians Jagadesh Dilli and Naveen Sivakumar, emerging victorious in a hard-fought three-setter that ended 21-17, 11-21, 21-11. 'Sukant and I decided to pair up just before the tournament. So yeah, initially, one or two matches, we were focusing on gelling up and getting comfortable together and to know how we are playing because over the years, we might have changed in a different way for playing,' Nitesh said.'I had a tactical plan for the final, the hall was windy, so choosing the right side was crucial. Interestingly, I did the opposite of what I'd done all tournament and chose the tougher side first. We managed to win a close set there, but lost the second due to overconfidence; however, we stayed positive. By the third set, we were up 11-3 at the interval and knew we just had to stay composed to seal the win. It was a sweet victory.' India also bagged bronze in the same category, with Mohammad Arwaz Ansari and Abhijeet Sakhuja securing a spot on the podium. Nitesh's form remained unstoppable in the men's singles SL3 category, where he defeated Indonesia's rising star Muh Ai Imran in straight sets. 'There was different pressure in the final because I was playing someone new to the international scene who was unbeaten and had defeated top players. I started by overthinking, expecting too much, but once I settled into my game, it got easier,' he said. In the mixed doubles SL3-SU5 event, India achieved a clean sweep of the podium. Nitesh, alongside Thulasimathi Murgesan, clinched the gold in a dominant straight-sets win over Ruthick Raghupathi and Manasi Joshi. With three gold medals to his name, Nitesh Kumar once again proved why he is one of the most decorated para-badminton players of his generation. (ANI)
Mint
28-06-2025
- Business
- Mint
We are all stuck in a pyramid scheme fuelled by AI FOMO
Gift this article Here is what I recently read about a company called and perhaps you did too? Here was a $1.5 billion company that had promised to make app designing as simple as 'ordering a pizza" using an AI environment called Natasha. Apparently, the company began to fall apart in 2025 because of a revelation that Natasha was not AI at all and was actually 700 Indian engineers madly typing away. This made me laugh only because it dug up a memory of a video or a cartoon in which we go to the ATM, press buttons expecting high-tech delivery of cash but meanwhile there is someone behind the wall in a safari suit whose manly arm comes out of the slot. You know, low-tech silliness. Not that bad decisions leading to the loss of employment and well-being of innocent parties is otherwise funny in any way. Here is what I recently read about a company called and perhaps you did too? Here was a $1.5 billion company that had promised to make app designing as simple as 'ordering a pizza" using an AI environment called Natasha. Apparently, the company began to fall apart in 2025 because of a revelation that Natasha was not AI at all and was actually 700 Indian engineers madly typing away. This made me laugh only because it dug up a memory of a video or a cartoon in which we go to the ATM, press buttons expecting high-tech delivery of cash but meanwhile there is someone behind the wall in a safari suit whose manly arm comes out of the slot. You know, low-tech silliness. Not that bad decisions leading to the loss of employment and well-being of innocent parties is otherwise funny in any way. Also read: Banu Mushtaq's recipe for Gobi Manchurian Life can be full of hard-to-believe-is-this-true comedy but apparently in the case of I hear that this story wasn't quite it. The truth about collapse was reportedly more about investors finding out about sketchy accounting. was allegedly not making as much money as it was telling its investors it was. You can see why someone wanted the other story to be true. The idea of Natasha on the outside being Nitesh on the inside with a BE and not just one Nitesh with a BE but many Niteshes with many BEs, is irresistible. Financial investment is also about wanting stories to be true. It might sound rational but often it is about finding some stories irresistible. When I was a girl living in a Malayali world, the news from my parents' hometowns in Kerala came in steady waves that made patterns easily discernible. One year, everyone was enthusiastically planting manjiyam to get rich, manjiyam being a kind of acacia tree. Another year we heard, everyone was into teak. I don't remember what was special about these goats but one year was Peak Goat. Emus came along much later but they did. The special feature about these get-rich-quick schemes is that it feels very democratic. It is the opposite of your uncle from the Gulf going into the forest in Wayanad with his two brand-new friends who know exactly where to find a secret cobra with a jewel on its forehead. A goat in hand is better than a snake in Kalpetta. No one got rich with manjiyam. All of last year, watchdogs of financial markets, institutional investors and other folks who are in the long game have been warning the world of 'AI washing". This can be confused with AI washing machines which promise to dissolve detergent in water before the wash cycle starts but let's not get distracted. AI washing is not so terribly exciting as technology sold as AI to excite investors who are looking for a new high. A good 69% of Indian CEOs are hopping with their legs crossed, investing in AI even though they don't quite know what it can do One of the most honest stories I have read in this context was in an Outlook Business report about IBM's 2025 CEO study. The study reportedly showed that FOMO was pushing investment in AI and that Indian CEOs were stressed because the revenue was not rolling in yet. In case that was one acronym too many, FOMO is the fear of missing out and the reason why small children hop about with their legs crossed rather than go to the bathroom. A good 69% of Indian CEOs are hopping with their legs crossed, the report says, investing in AI even though they don't quite know what it can do because they are afraid of missing out. I recently wrote a set of at-home exams and my 16-year-old nephew asked me what is stopping me from using ChatGPT. On WhatsApp I am hindered from climbing on to my soapbox and becoming a bore about how thrilling it is to be able to study in my old age. So instead I just said that in these exams, it was not about getting correct answers from texts, it is about being able to say something new. Of course, folks working in education are constantly having to warn students that generative AI can get things wrong too. And that it skips the steps of knowledge creation where humans first get things wrong, then right, then they get wonderfully inventive. Also read: When we mock the working class, the joke is on us Casey Fiesler, an information science professor at the University of Colorado, Boulder, has an excellent explanation for why ChatGPT is not a search engine. Large Language Models, she says, is not searching for data, it only has a 'statistical echo" of data. ChatGPT gets things wrong, Fiesler says, because it is 'statistically probable, linguistically fluent not verifiably accurate." I heard this explanation and felt a deep sense of déjà vu—an echo of tech bro desire that doesn't mind being wrong as long as it happens fast and sounds smooth. The being wrong part is a problem, of course. It is the fast part that I think is a bigger problem. Why is everyone dying to be so fast? Why have big companies transferred their FOMO to not letting their employees go to the bathroom? Why do CEOs not want their employees to stay at home and look at their husbands or wives? People who already have a crazy amount of money feel like it isn't enough. And like the people who worked for the pharaohs, we are stuck in their pyramid scheme. With the disclaimer that I find a hand sticking out of the ATM slot funny, I want to say, my friends, AI is beginning to feel a wee bit manjiyam. Nisha Susan is the author of The Women Who Forgot to Invent Facebook and Other Stories. ChatGPT gets things wrong because it is statistically probable, linguistically fluent not verifiably accurate. 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Time of India
22-06-2025
- Sport
- Time of India
RP Singh is president, Abhijit Sarkar Sr VP of UP Hockey
1 2 3 Lucknow:Former Indian captain RP Singh has been unanimously elected president of UP Hockey in the elections held during the Annual General Meeting (AGM) of the association at the KD Singh 'Babu' Stadium on Sunday. Abhijit Sarkar has been named senior vice-president, while Rajnish Mishra and Nisha Mishra were elected secretary and treasurer, respectively. Animesh Saxena (RSO) acted as an observer, with HI vice-president Nitin Kohli and general secretary of the Uttar Pradesh Olympic Association Anandeshwar Pandey in attendance. Nitesh bags three golds Nitesh Kumar bagged three gold medals at the Asian Para Badminton Championship in Thailand, as the Indian contingent claimed a rich haul of 27 medals, including four gold, 10 silver, and 13 bronze. Nitesh won the men's singles gold in the SL3 category before clinching the yellow metal in mixed doubles and men's doubles, partnering with T. Murgesan and Sukant Kadam, respectively. Manisha Ramadas claimed the women's singles title in the SU5 category, while Palak Kohli and Mandeep Kaur settled for silver in the women's singles SL4 and SL3 categories, respectively.
Time of India
08-06-2025
- Politics
- Time of India
CM downplays Nitesh Rane's ‘BJP is superior' comment
Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar: A day after BJP minister Nitesh Rane said that his party is the "baap" (father, implying superiority) of all others, which is why it is holding the post of chief minister in Maharashtra, CM Devendra Fadnavis on Sunday downplayed the controversy surrounding these comments. "I haven't heard what he (Rane) said. I am only a servant of Maharashtra," he told media persons. A short while earlier, Shiv Sena MLA Nilesh Rane had reprimanded Nitesh, his younger brother, for the same comments. In a post on X, Nilesh, who represents the Kudal assembly seat, had said Nitesh should be mindful of his words and ensure that his comments do not offer any gains to the opposition. Nilesh, who joined the Sena after leaving BJP as part of the seat-sharing adjustment for the 2024 assembly elections, said Nitesh should not forget that Maharashtra has a coalition govt. In a cryptic reply to the post of his elder brother on X, Nitesh said, "Nilesh ji… you are tax-free." The comments by Nitesh were made while addressing party workers in Dharashiv on Saturday against the backdrop of friction between the local unit of BJP and Shiv Sena over sanctioning District Planning Development Committees (DPDC) projects. It was considered an apparent dig at Dharashiv guardian minister and Shiv Sena minister Pratap Sarnaik. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Pinga-Pinga e HBP? Tome isso 1x ao dia se tem mais de 40 anos Portal Saúde do Homem Clique aqui Undo Dharashiv MP of Shiv Sena (UBT), Omraje Nimbalkar, has targeted Nitesh over his comments. "Gaining power in democracy does not mean anybody becomes the 'baap'. (Nitesh) Rane is experiencing a frenzy at present, but the people of Maharashtra will show him his place soon," he said. Omraje also said that he secured more votes in the last Lok Sabha elections than the combined vote share of Nitesh, his brother Nilesh, and father, Narayan Rane. While addressing party workers in Dharashiv on Saturday, Nitesh also said that no matter how much power anybody shows or throws tantrums, they should remember that the country has a Prime Minister of BJP and the state has a CM of the party.
