India Village Project - Charlotte Jones
The India Village Project is a small charity dedicated to raising funds for underprivileged schools in Southern India. We are a small charity which is now in its 14th year and are dedicated to raising funds for underprivileged schools in Southern India. We began the charity in Lawside RC Academy (now St. Paul's R.C. Academy), Dundee, in 2006, inspired by the work of many other schools in Scotland which were forging links with many overseas communities. Since our work began over 50 pupils and teachers in Dundee and Hamilton have been to India to meet the Brothers and to see first-hand the improvements and successes of the schools and the people the charity supports.
Because of our connections with the Marist Brothers in the School we were able to make links with schools in towns and villages in the state of Tamil Nadu, in Southern India and especially the area around Mangamanuthu, where most of the population were Dalits .
Dalit is the name given to people who were formerly called "Untouchables" and under the old caste system were on the bottom rung of Indian society. Although the caste system has been formally abolished, hundreds of years of tradition have proved hard to clear away completely and the Dalits, who come from many religious backgrounds including Hindu, Christian and Muslim, remain firmly on the bottom rung of society and often have little access to education through poverty and other social circumstances.
The School we chose to initially support, is called St. Marcellin High School, after St. Marcellin Champagnat. However after a visit by some representatives from Lawside R.C. Academy to St Marcellin we decided that we could also support, with the help of St. John's R.C. High School, P. Udayapatti High School which is in a neighbouring village and also run by our Indian Marist Brothers.
It further increased in size when St. Ninians Primary School in Hamilton got involved and looked to support P.U. Primary School.
Over the many years, the India Village Project, through various different fund raising efforts, has raised money which has been used to provide building materials to increase the capacity and furnishings in the schools. We also managed to secure a grant that allowed the Brothers to purchase of a piece of land next to St Marcellin High School. This enabled them to build a new wing onto the school increasing their capacity allowing pupils to be educated up to 6th year and sit University and College entrance examinations.
Both schools have also benefited from the provision of educational materials, science, computer and sports equipment, sports uniforms along with furbishing their new library with books.
Initially when the staff and pupils agreed to setting up the project they only planned to support the school in Mangamanuthu, however after they heard of the plight of some of the villagers, one family had lost their young baby as a result of a snake bite when the snake crawled under the thatched wall of their home, the charity raised enough money to rebuild some of the poorest houses in the village. One elderly couple, who received a house, had never in their entire lives had a solid built concrete house. Eight families now have a solid home thanks to the support given by the Project. Most of the villagers have also been given livestock, mainly goats, to enable them to have a daily supply of fresh milk to give to their youngsters.
Our project provides further support to the work carried out by The Brothers by supporting a project known as "Operation Rainbow". This project was set up by the Brothers to support children and families affected by HIV. In the beginning we helped by providing funding to purchase high protein supplements to improve their diet.
We then provided funding to purchase sewing machines. These sewing machines were given to some of the most needy women in the outlying villages to help them to create take on work to provide a wage to support their families. After a time the charity then also provided annual funding to support the education of 100 youngsters and their families involved in the project.
This project has over the years has seen the Brothers develop this project into a self financing trust.
The Trust is known as the "Marcellin Trust", which not only provides medicinal support to its members but has created a support family network that attend monthly meetings, held in a newly build community hall with a flushable toilets.
The "Trust" offers adult support and education and also offers practical dressmaking, tailoring and computer classes for any of its adult or pupil members. It has also created links with local businesses and is supported by the people of the local and wider communities.With the development of the "Marcellin Trust" and it becoming self financing our charity were then keen to support a new venture set up by the Brothers. We were invited to support a homework project known as La Valla Evening Study School. The motto of all of the centres is "Empowering and Inspiring Lives through Education". As our charity is predominantly supported by the work done in schools we were delighted to be asked if we could help. It involves paying salaries to 13 teachers who work with and help youngsters and adults to complete their homework and to help them with exam preparation. This is available in 12 of the outlying villages surrounding Trichipally and within the district of Tamil Nadu and it reaches out to 365 children across the various villages.
The children are encouraged to attend a local facility, which provides a safe environment and the opportunity to study. They have access to educational equipment and a qualified teacher. Snacks and a drink are provided for all who attend the nightly sessions. It adds to the developments of their self worth and allows them to make and meet friends. Every child that regularly attends will also be given the opportunity to take part in 4 educational trips per year and any seminars that the Brothers include in the annual programme.
While our India Village Project charity supports, in a small way, the many projects and hard work carried out by the Brothers in Trichy, the project is not only about fund raising. We have managed to embed the values of St Marcellin Champagnat and the ideas of global citizenship into the curriculum of all of the schools associated with the project. We have increased the number of our supporters involved with the project.
We have many generous people throughout Dundee and Scotland who not only give us regular donations but give us their time freely to assist with the running of the project. They have also afforded friendship and Scottish hospitality to a few of the Brothers when we reciprocated the offer to come to Scotland to spend a few weeks meeting and learning about our culture and work carried out in our Schools.
