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 In
many ways I could have been anywhere in the world –
seeing a well established school meeting the needs of low
paid and vulnerable families.
A shadow puppet show about how to react to barking stray dogs
engaged the adults almost as much as it did the children.
John Roussell had rehearsed the staff who delivered this moral
mantra with skill. The puppets were excellent and the script
simple but filled with messages. At key points the staff stopped
the play and invited the children to speculate as to the correct
action they should take if they faced this situation. Here
the phrase never work with animals and small children comes
to mind – we learnt in our debrief that the children
thought the dog looked like a cat – (to which John remarked
to us "The dog should have introduced himself at the
beginning" which somehow seemed hilarious in the moment)
and that the answer to the stone throwing dilemma was to throw
biger stones and kill the dog – just goes to show that
things get lost in translation across many media! For us however
the shadow puppets' impact was safeguarded forever in our
memories.
The project’s wholistic approach was impressive –
it’s impact measured in good child development, education,
positive impact on self esteem and strengthening the children
and their families in physical health terms. Malnutrition
is a critical issue and in the slums of Bangalore as with
many places poor diets are a function of many things including
poverty and lack of knowledge.
A key part of each day is the delivery of high protein drinks.
A ground powder which costs less than £2 pcm per child
- is made by the staff who ground grain, lentils, nuts, milk,
sugar . This mixture is given to ech child as part of the
cost of their place in the school – also just 30 rupees
– but Chitra’s strong values and belief in the
dignity of those receiving as well as those giving means that
although the community is poor, everyone can see in some way
the value of the place.
Part of the extended role of the school is fulfilled by selling
the mixture at 30 rupees (about 50p) to parents and 50 rupees
to others in the community.
Following this trip - we ventured to the community college.
This college is made up of women from 16 - 32 and there were
5 languages spoken - Kannada, Urdu, Telugu, Tamil, and English.
The women were lively passionate and enthusiastic about their
learning. We introduced ourselves and heard from the woman
a little about themselves. After which we each said a little
of our journey in education, life and work and our hopes for
them through their education.
This visit came to grow n significance throughout the day
(and subsequently as we reflected upon it) – the commonality
between all of us as women as well as the contextual and relative
differences burrowed deep with each of us in our conversations.
As women stood up – some told what they had learnt and
applied – some focused on childcare and how with younger
siblings or their own children it had changed their practice.
Others told of understanding that the taboo around fruit –
as a cold food – was incorrect and that eating fruit
didn’t make you cold and therefore ill. Still others
spoke of their confidence and language skills. One woman stood
up and told us she had learned that she was special –
it stopped us in our tracks but as her story unfolded we learnt
of women who had come from families with ‘too many girls’
– too many mouths to fed, debt to consider with dowries
and hence unlikely to safeguard the families future. As girls
marry, they leave their home to join the home of their husband-
little for her birth family then to benefit from as some would
see it. This woman had learned at the college that despite
depression and failed attempts on her life – that in
fact she is special – and her value not dependent upon
others’ views – more on how she saw herself and
perhaps (although I don’t know) I suspect a perspective
on being valued in the eyes of God. It made me choke back
the moisture from my eyes and reflect on the accident of where
we are born in terms of how we are seen and see ourselves
as women.
Like CC1 – this part of ‘Concerns’ work
-the college –also charges - 500 rupees admission and
150 pcm alternatively if women just want computer access they
can get this for 30 rupees pcm -many come to learn and like
my experiences in Blackburne House in Liverpool – find
a place in which they want to continue to learn and gorw for
may years to come.
We left the college and walked across live railway line. Debris,
rag picking opportunities, animals, (a dog with major prolapse
– uhm- eking out survival) stood between us and the
next slum community we visited and the second childcare project
CC2
This community is noticeably poorer and Concerns has only
recently secured some premises to work here – fulfilling
its vision to keep moving into the places with greatest need
whilst supporting earlier work in communities where their
impact shows that the community growing in sustainability.
Here the children were much more timid and withdrawn –
sat backs to wall and a little frightened by the strange white
visitors despite the fact we had arrived with candies.
More space afforded us the chance to talk about the projects,
Chitra ‘s vision, the importance of a secure base for
the work in one community to enable the flexibility to keep
moving to where the need is. We looked at the management team
structure and talked business plans, how to access clean titles
on land and the challenges that lie ahead. IN this conversation,
I grew even more respect for the amazing and diverse talents
of Chitra as a leader, a business woman, a guru, a community
animateur and as a gentle warrior. Her willingness to lovingly
challenge poverty, exclusion, marriages between relatives
too close to be safe, expensive dowries, women’s access
to independence, construction workers’ children’s
rights to attend school even if they have to bring their younger
siblings for whom they have childcare responsibilities –
she would not draw a boundary or ignore the connectivity of
what prevented those in the slums from thriving.
We learnt in this discussion about the relativities and costs
–
• Teachers avg salaries are around 2k- 3k rupees (around
£35 pcm) – any many of the teachers are from the
community and have come through the college. All but Chitra
and her right hand centre coo-ordinator Yeshoda – are
on part time contracts to spread the benefits of employment
across many women
• Most children come from homes where Mom is maid, and
Dad is autorickshaw drivers – poor wages and poor future
prospects
• Land titles are hard to find in a clean state with
man claiming ownership and sellingor letting on with or without
the authority
• Rents on CCI are about £5500; on CC2 £5500;
and on the college £3000 for a year - £14k per
annum to secure the premises but better still if we could
find some land to buy
This session opened up our insights into how we might start
to build upon the strengths of Concerns – and I suspect
will only have scratched the surface in understanding what
is and what could be if Chitras wings could spread.
After our visit to Concerns, Sandra, Sande and I travelled
to the famous MG road – Mahatma Gandhi Road –
a contrast as a shopping and eating area but it provided the
space for us to chat, eat and change the moment. The morning
had been full of many emotions and there was much to consider
about how we could work in the future with Concerns.
We ate , we shopped and we returned early evening to meet
up with the others at a familiy’s house in a old and
well established part of town. This visit, to Asha and Babi's,
was most interesting. Another side to Bangalore. Babi is a
retired officer and they live in a well-established middle
class neighborhood. And a house full of old Indian splendour.
We shared some snacks, alcohol and some wonderful stories
as Babi in particular told of his time as a test pilot in
India and beyond! Very different from other evenings and one
I fel so pleased to have seen to add to my insight into the
diversity that is this part of India.
Following this we travelled to Chitras flat. The contrast
was not lost - A modest government home which is near CC1
the first preschool set up by CUF. It houses Chitra, Lancelot
and their two kids Bathina and Andrew. Whilst space was limited,
the emotional connectivity and intimacy seemed aided by the
proximity of one to another.
Dinner was excellent and I could help but wonder how Chitra
ran a business, family and a first class kitchen - our day
had been long and tiring but nothing on hers which start 5:30
am with grinding spices and preparing a cooked breakfast.
We were joined by Emerson Samuel (he was a consultant to CASA
- a large NGO in India) and he talked of the impact of land
in rural areas being fragmented by families to provide ownership
and dowries to the younger generation and which now no longer
economically sustainable as smaller plots. Rural dwellers
are therefore being forced into selling land to people from
the cities wanting second homes, then they are coming into
the city for work - a double blow and the net effect is to
increase the polarity between rich and poor.
Emerson also spoke of the tensions around short term economic
gain and medium term environmental damage particularly around
surface coal mining.
Finally we spoke of the importance of bilateral partnerships
and the need for duality/mutuality in these relationships.
We returned home somewhat exhausted but ready to chill, debrief
and consume our newly acquired wine – its a theme which
will recur now we have discovered one can get fermented grape-
a small gesture to a home based habit but as with all we are
doing – with a very Indian flavour.
So our late night delayed the debrief but much to tell of
today. But there will be more time tomorrow. X
Day Five
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