Parisar

Parisar supports this move by Pune Municipal Corporation.

“Open wood burning causes significant pollution, which adversely impacts citizens’ health. Once people are aware of the eco-friendly cremation facilities, they will be able to use them more easily.”
- Sharmila Deo, Senior Program Associate, Parisar

The Pune Municipal Corporation has launched a drive to promote free electric and gas cremation across 21 centres to reduce pollution and deforestation. Despite availability, most citizens prefer traditional methods at Vaikunth Smashanbhumi, increasing pollution. The initiative, under NCAP and LiFE, aims to raise awareness through QR codes and hospital outreach, offering a cleaner, faster, and cost-free alternative.

Public transport is used by lakhs every day, but how often do we look at how buses actually run, or the condition of the stops we wait at?

Parisar is looking for field to support bus stop audits and basic bus performance surveys across as part of the 'Pune’s WBC (Walk, Bus, Cycle) Count: Mobility Scorecard of the City' project.

If you’re interested in cities, mobility, and understanding how things work on the ground, this is a chance to be part of a city-wide study.

📍 Pune | ⏳ 1 month | 🚀 Start: 15 April
📩 Send your CV & cover letter to: [email protected]
🗓️ Apply by: 14 April

publishes extensive every month on ridership, revenue, and performance. But what does this data tell us, and is it really shaping decisions?

📢 Join us for a webinar on
“Analysing Public Transport Data: PMPML Dashboard Demonstration”

🗓️ April 10
🕓 4 PM
📍 Zoom
🔗 bit.ly/pmpmldashboard (Link in bio)

Through a live demo, we’ll explore how raw excel sheets can turn into meaningful insights, and how data can become a tool for decision-making, media, and citizen engagement.

We’ll also share what we found while analysing PMPML’s 2025 data, and what becomes possible when data is not just published, but understood.🚍📊

“The safety of pedestrians is not a luxury, but a constitutional obligation of the state.”
— Supreme Court of India

But how often do we actually think of walking as a right?

The Right to Walk — access to safe, unobstructed, and disabled-friendly footpaths and safe crossings — is part of the Right to Life under Article 21 of the Indian Constitution.

This right is further supported by the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, Motor Vehicles Act, and the Indian Roads Congress Guidelines for Pedestrian Facilities, which mandate safe, continuous, and accessible walking infrastructure.

Yet, everyday experiences tell a different story. When footpaths are broken, blocked, or unsafe, it reflects how easily fundamental rights are overlooked in our cities.

Did you know about your rights as pedestrians? Stay tuned to learn how you can exercise them.

Parisar has told the Pune Municipal Corporation not to shift Kalakar Katta, saying the popular art and cultural spot is not causing traffic problems. According to the NGO’s technical study, the junction near Goodluck Chowk is already safe and properly designed.

The report says the real issue is vehicles stopping randomly near the area. Autorickshaws, two-wheelers, taxis and delivery vehicles often stop near eateries and narrow the road, creating traffic during peak hours.

Parisar has suggested strict no-halting and no-parking rules, better signage and moving seating slightly away from the road instead of relocating Kalakar Katta. Artists and regular visitors have also opposed the move, saying the space is an important part of Pune’s cultural identity.

We didn’t always produce this much . Not necessarily because we were more “aware” but because systems worked differently.

Today, is framed as a waste problem. So we try to recycle, manage, and dispose better. But plastic is also a production and a climate problem. Recycling deals with plastic after it exists. But, asks a more fundamental question: What if it never became waste in the first place?

Across , reuse systems already exist, often informal, invisible, and unsupported. This , we’re starting by mapping them.

If you’ve seen reuse in action — street vendors, refill practices, returnable packaging — tell us. And if you’re working on waste, retail, packaging, or policy, we’d love to connect.

“If buses help reduce pollution, there needs to be more buses and more people using them.”

We’ve heard this multiple times but this time, it didn’t come from an expert, planner, or even an adult. It came from a student of Pune’s Anandakshan School, who took part in an AQI (Air Quality Index) Walk conducted by under the IEC programme of for students from standards 5 to 9.

The session began with an introduction to followed by a hands-on walk where students measured air quality inside their school and just outside it, noticing how even small changes in surroundings affect what we breathe.

What stood out was how students began to recognise and connect everyday actions — like public transport use, cycling and waste management — to air pollution in the city.

Understanding the air around us is the first step towards changing it.

Last Friday, students from Huzurpaga Girls High School and Junior College joined local citizens for an Air Quality Index (AQI) Walk in Pune’s Peth area to see, record and clear the air of mystery around what we're breathing.

The walk was organised by under the IEC programme of the National Clean Air Programme ( ), in collaboration with Parisar, and .

As participants moved through different streets, the AQI changed significantly depending on traffic congestion, street activities and nearby pollution sources. Even small activities like burning incense sticks caused a sharp but temporary spike in particulate levels.

Understanding these patterns is the first step towards building cleaner and healthier neighbourhoods.