Joydeep Thakur is a Special Correspondent based in Kolkata. He focuses on science, environment, wildlife, agriculture and other related issues.
Articles by Joydeep Thakur
Mother of all Indian gardens
Be it the mahogany, the cinchona or the rubber plant, every tree at the Indian Botanic Garden in Shibpur, Howrah, has a tale of its own to tell
Updated on Dec 20, 2012 12:02 PM IST
Hindustan Times | Joydeep Thakur, Kolkata
Country’s first inventory of urban biodiversity to kick off in Kolkata
The idea is to prepare a list of the species, which are found in and around the city and their present status
Updated on Nov 01, 2012 02:13 PM IST
Hindustan Times | Joydeep Thakur, Kolkata
Slice Of Bangla In Bengal
Though nine people out of 10 coming to Kolkata from Bangladesh, according to Kolkata Police, are looking for better and cheaper treatment here, there are others who come here to shop, move around and make merry, writes Joydeep Thakur.
Updated on Oct 18, 2012 05:33 PM IST
Hindustan Times | Joydeep Thakur, Kolkata
Slice of Bangla in Bengal
Though nine people out of 10 coming to Kolkata from Bangladesh, according to Kolkata Police, are looking for better and cheaper treatment here, there are others who come here to shop, move around and make merry, writes Joydeep Thakur.
Updated on Oct 18, 2012 04:10 PM IST
Hindustan Times | Joydeep Thakur, Kolkata
Schools study handwriting to understand students better
City schools are increasingly turning to graphology — the science of analysing handwriting — in order to understand the special needs of students instead of resorting to corporal punishment to discipline them.
Updated on Oct 11, 2012 01:30 PM IST
Hindustan Times | Joydeep Thakur, Kolkata
Molest slur on scientist hits key ISRO projects
Several scientific research projects funded by the ISRO and the department of science and technology, including that of India’s first ‘herbal prawn culture project’, are on the brink of grinding to a halt.
Updated on Oct 07, 2012 12:16 PM IST
Hindustan Times | Joydeep Thakur, Kolkata
Half of Bengal sex-starved from lack of privacy
There’s a Freudian shocker tucked away in the latest Census files. Cramped living conditions are wreaking havoc with the sex lives of more than half of Bengal’s households.
Updated on Sep 26, 2012 10:36 AM IST
Hindustan Times | Joydeep Thakur, Kolkata
Kolkata’s groundwater a cocktail of toxic waste
The city’s natural groundwater reservoirs (aquifers), depleted through the years because of rampant use of tubewells, are being gradually filled with a cocktail of toxic pollutants.
Updated on Sep 04, 2012 01:48 PM IST
Hindustan Times | Joydeep Thakur, Kolkata
Paranormal activity on Nagerbazar flyover alarms people
A flyover ghost, a totally novel apparition, the fear of which has been stalking numerous residents of Nagerbazar, one of the most crowded areas of Kolkata
Updated on Aug 31, 2012 01:49 PM IST
None | Ratnalekha Mazumdar & Joydeep Thakur, Kolkata
Minting on error: Rs. 5 coins go for Rs. 5,000
Minted for a special occasion, the 2010 Commonwealth Games in Delhi, some coins have become special, collector's item. With no denomination on them, each such 5-rupee coin is now selling for Rs. 5,000 or more.
Updated on Aug 30, 2012 02:28 PM IST
Hindustan Times | Joydeep Thakur, Kolkata
Gold is old, cash is king in temples
With the rising gold prices, even gods seem to be feeling the pinch. From Tirupati to Siddhivinayak, gold offerings have dropped in every temple.
Updated on Jul 05, 2012 02:24 AM IST
Hindustan Times | Joydeep Thakur, Kolkata
Train rape victim trashes Trivedi’s safety pitch
Railway minister Dinesh Trivedi might have won accolades by making safety a priority in the railway budget. But in a remote corner of Bengal, his assurances seem to have come a bit late. Joydeep Thakur reports.
Updated on Mar 15, 2012 01:22 AM IST
Hindustan Times | Joydeep Thakur, Katwa (burdwan)
Cyclonic storm brewing, 700 tourists stranded
Nearly 700 tourists, domestic and foreign, have been stranded in the Havelock Islands of South Andamans since Sunday because the authorities suspended transport services to Port Blair after the weather turned inclement. A cyclonic storm is blowing over the Bay of Bengal.
Updated on Dec 28, 2011 02:14 AM IST
Hindustan Times | Joydeep Thakur, Kolkata
Kolkata’s heroes are slumdog bravehearts
Most of the 25 patients Shankar Maity dragged out of the giant, smoke-filled chimney that the AMRI hospital turned into on Friday have survived. But the 23-year-old — a resident of the Panchanantala slum bordering the hospital boundary — wasn’t so lucky and is battling for life. Joydeep Thakur & Snigdhendu Bhattacharya report. Mamata to order judicial probe | Two Kerala nurses die saving 8 patients
Updated on Dec 11, 2011 02:05 AM IST
Hindustan Times | Joydeep Thakur & Snigdhendu Bhattacharya, Kolkata
Govt open to reasoned debate on Lokpal Bill: PM
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh today reiterated that the government is open to a debate on the Lokpal Bill. He also said that there is no single solution to tackle corruption. Joydeep Thakur reports.
Updated on Aug 22, 2011 12:24 PM IST
Hindustan Times | Joydeep Thakur, Kolkata
A clean, green sweep
If anybody had any doubt on how decisive the mandate for Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee was, a cursory glance at the results of Kolkata put to rest all such doubts. Joydeep Thakur reports.
Updated on May 14, 2011 04:43 PM IST
Hindustan Times | Joydeep Thakur, Kolkata
It’s a clean, green sweep in Kolkata
If anybody had any doubt on how decisive the mandate for Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee was, a cursory glance at the results of Kolkata put to rest all such doubts. Never had the city, since Independence, handed down such a sweeping verdict in favour of a single party. Joydeep Thakur reports. Result is miracle: Mamata | City of joy
Updated on May 13, 2011 11:46 PM IST
Hindustan Times | Joydeep Thakur, Kolkata
Secret ops await poll staff
Such will be the security arrangements at the counting centres on Friday that officials who will be counting the ballots will be kept in the dark about the table number and the constituency assigned to them until the last moment. Joydeep Thakur reports.
Updated on May 12, 2011 03:53 PM IST
Hindustan Times | Joydeep Thakur, Kolkata
Turnout makes Elections 2011 historic
The confidence-building measures and unprecedented security steps taken by the Election Commission (EC) have yielded results. Joydeep Thakur and Sukumar Debnath report.
Updated on May 12, 2011 01:41 PM IST
Hindustan Times | Joydeep Thakur and Sukumar Debnath, Kolkata
Many moods of candidates on the day of elections
It was an examination for which they had been all waiting eagerly. While for some it was a test to retain power and pride, for others it was an opportunity to defeat their arch-rival. For all 71 candidates who took the poll exam from North Dinajpur on Monday, the daily routine seemed to have turned upside down. Joydeep Thakur reports.
Updated on Apr 19, 2011 04:53 PM IST
Hindustan Times | Joydeep Thakur, Raiganj
Hic hic hurray for voting!
They were drunk. Not with the maddening intoxication of democracy but with the traditionally trusted hariya. And they were so drunk they could not vote. Joydeep Thakur reports.
Updated on Apr 19, 2011 04:54 PM IST
Hindustan Times | Joydeep Thakur, Raiganj
Mobile only asset of Independent nominee
His only asset a mobile phone worth Rs 1,500, Bimal Mondol, 38, an Independent candidate from Behala East, is one of the poorest candidates contesting this election.
Updated on Apr 07, 2011 01:09 PM IST
Hindustan Times | Joydeep Thakur, Kolkata
Cong broke away from us
A leader of the minorities, Siddiqullah Chowdhury of Jamate Ulema-e-Hind is a significant player in Bengal politics. He was with the Congress before tying up with Mamata Banerjee for a brief period.
Updated on Apr 01, 2011 06:04 PM IST
Hindustan Times | Joydeep Thakur, Kolkata
Mamataa budgets for poll bound Bengal with sops
The chief minister in-waiting for West Bengal, Mamata Banerjee, presented the railway budget for the nation showering sops for her state which is all set to witness one of its most crucial Assembly polls in the last three decades. Joydeep Thakur reports.
Updated on Feb 25, 2011 03:55 PM IST
Hindustan Times | Joydeep Thakur, Kolkata
WB train collision: A 9-min, 7-km mystery
At the last station before it went out of control, all was well with the Uttarbanga Express. But at 2.04 am it rammed Ranchi-bound Vananchal Express at Sainthia station, killing 69 people and injuring more than 150. Joydeep Thakur reports.Tracking the doubts
Updated on Jul 21, 2010 12:34 PM IST
Hindustan Times | Joydeep Thakur, Sainthia
Rescuers return valuables found in disaster debris
As dozens of dreams died at Sainthia station on a dark Monday morning, some young hawkers whose lives revolve around train timetables resisted the urge to make a quick buck from the debris of the disaster.
Updated on Jul 20, 2010 12:33 AM IST
Hindustan Times | Joydeep Thakur, Sainthia
Rescuers who returned valuables and saved lives
They had a lifetime chance to do away with their poverty at one go. But instead they chose to keep aside their greed, when it came to choosing between humanity and earning a livelihood in an unethical manner. Joydeep Thakur reports.
Updated on Jul 19, 2010 05:22 PM IST
Hindustan Times | Joydeep Thakur, Sainthia
Bengal Govt points finger at Maoist activists
The West Bengal government is saying Friday’s train tragedy in Jhargram was the handiwork of the Maoists. Chances are the government is right.
Updated on May 29, 2010 12:12 AM IST
Hindustan Times | Joydeep Thakur and Surbek Biswas, Kharagpur / Kolkata
A deafening sound, silence, then another crash
Sukumar Banerjee’s five relatives, including two children aged five and ten years, died in Friday’s mishap.
Updated on May 29, 2010 12:09 AM IST
Hindustan Times | Joydeep Thakur, West Midnapore
Kolkata body wants SRK to give up Lux Cozi
An association in Kolkata on Wednesday wrote to filmstar Shahrukh Khan, requesting him to give up ambassadorship of the hosiery brand Lux Cozi, whose tie-up with the actor’s cricket team is on hold.
Updated on Feb 25, 2010 12:55 AM IST
Hindustan Times | Joydeep Thakur, Kolkata