Background: Adolescence lays the foundation for physical wellbeing, emotional stability and mental ability. Quantitative methods often lack depth of understanding on crucial issues and leave many lacunae in the information available about the problems faced by adolescent girls in India. Using qualitative methods, a researcher can go beyond the surface and gather hidden information and associated feelings. Objective of the research was to qualitatively assess the knowledge, attitude and practices of health among adolescent girls (15-19 years) living in a rural area.Methods: This qualitative study to explore issues surrounding the health of adolescent girls in a rural area was conducted from August 2018 to November 2018 in the rural field practice area of the NRI Medical College. The qualitative methods used to gather information were focus group discussions (FGDs) and in-depth interviews (IDIs). Triangulation of information was done through key informant interviews (KIIs) with professionals working with adolescents.Results: The themes identified were causes of stress, education & marriage, safe pregnancy, prevalent diseases, exercise and leisure, health seeking behaviour and domestic violence. In-depth interviews with girls having significant social and psychological risk factors revealed a sense of loss of freedom, decision making power and resignation to their fate. Key informants revealed the neglect of adolescents in health programmes.Conclusions: Adolescent girls have poor knowledge about important health issues. Interventions that focus both on the continuation of the girls’ education and creating options for generating income are necessary along with non-judgmental counseling services and adolescent friendly health care facilities.

The Hada rulers of Kota state were devout followers of Hindu religion, but at the same time, they demonstrated their spirit of religious toleration towards all the other religions and sects. The archival documents give sufficient data and information that the Hada rulers liberally made land grants as well as cash donations to priestly class people and temples. The grants were liberally distributed by the state for the upkeep and maintenance of temples, the priestly class, intellectuals and Brahmins. The state also constructed temples and maintained and repaired them as per requirement from time to time. Priests, monks, sages and pandits were attached to the temples with financial assistance from the state exchequer. The state also ensured that regularly ritual worship is performed in temples, the lamp is lighted, prasad is distributed, havan ( yajnas) and special poojas are performed on festive occasions, and bhog [food items, sweet meat, coconut, etc.] is offered to the presiding deities of the temple. The state also deployed katha vachaks [preachers] to different villages and urban centres to recite religious texts and stories on the virtues of heavenly gods. This was aimed at preserving and upholding the moral social order in the society and Varnashrama Dharma, which was followed by the Hara rulers of the Harawati region. The percentage of land granted to temples and also for charitable purposes ranged between 3% and 15% in different parganas of the state, which was higher than the land grants made by Mughal rulers.