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Published: February 26th 2007
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Young boy with Polio
This little guy loves to sing, he didn't go to school until he had the wooden stabiliser, polio is no eradicated in Adhra Pradesh but has effected lots of children and isn't curable. Hello!!!
Well what an eventful week I have had! Returned from Gokarna Beach early on Monday morning. Shortly after arriving at work I found out that I would return to the comfort of the overnight bus to Prakasam in Adhra Pradesh to visit one of our projects. This is on the east coast of India, the complete other side of India to where I had been at the weekend. Attempting to sound thrilled yet feeling disgruntled with the prospect of the journey, I reminded myself that I would finally get to see the real India and what I am working for.
Myself, and two of my colleagues arrived in Ongle, one of the larger cities, around 7am Tuesday morning. It was clear straight away that Prakasam was going to be far cry from the western opulence of Bangalore. Huge pigs now contributed to the daily traffic of the city, the land was flat and the temperature far hotter, agriculture and granite provide the majority jobs, in comparison to the multinational software companies of Bangalore. Everything was written in Telagu and very few spoke English. We checked into our hotel, I was pleased and surprised at the sight of my
Blind women
Me and the lady who was blinded, she now has two buffalo's which she gets Rs. 90 per litre for their milk. own room and a double bed for the next three nights, however without much rest we swiftly had our breakfast and went straight to the office.
Prakasam is a district of Adhra Pradesh, which is an eastern state; districts are divided into Mandels, which consist of 7 or 8 villages. To put it in to prospective our project works in two coastal Mandles, in which 800 or more people with disabilities have been identified, a lot of disabled people. Prakasam is famous for its granite production which is responsible for a lot a disabilities, and this is clear in the city of Ongle, on a two minute rikshaw drive from the hotel to the office I would come across four or five disabled people at the side of the road. Also, the district has a very high fluorine content in the water, a healthy amount is 1mg, whereas most of Prakasam’s water supply has 20mg, this causes a great deal of muscular and bone disfigurements and teeth problems in the area.
My first two days was spent in the field in the two mandels, we travelled by motorbike across dirt tracks through huge tobacco plantations, which was fantastic,
Buffalo
We loaned the blind woman money for these buffalo, she now sells their milk we would randomly come across small and very quiet villages as most would be in the fields, the villages looked like something from the middle ages. I have never seen poverty such as this, women would be picking cattle dung from the roads as they could not afford gas, people lived in huts made out of leaves from the coconut trees, few had toilets and most was living on less than Rs. 100 per day, just over a pound, however paradoxically the villages and the huts were clean and nicely kept in comparison with the richer, yet dirtier cities.
My days were filled with going from house to house, or hut to hut, to visit people that the project was reaching. A lot of the time the project had loaned them money to set up a small petty shop, or money to buy some buffalo so they could sell the milk, really simple things but thing which provided them independence and a livelihood. The sad thing was that nearly all the people I met, their disabilities could have been prevented, one women who was completely blind had perfect sight but had conjunctivitis as a teenager, her family put a
Guy with broken spine
Guy who broke his spine falling out of a coconut tree, before Leonard Cheshire identified him he was restrained to his house where four people sleep in one room, now he has a wheel chair, a ramp and is part of a self help group with other disabled people where they all contribute money in a savings account. strange concoction into her eyes to cure it but unfortunately ended up blinding her for life. I met many people who had broken their spines from falling at work, people with muscular problems due to the fluorine, and children with polio who cant walk properly. It was wonderful to see that the project had made a difference, and these children now had wooden stabalisers so could go to school, that people could now make a living and was given the opportunity to have surgery. All this is well and good but this project is only working in two mandels out of about 50 in the district, it seems like just drops in the ocean and its obvious things need to change on a much bigger scale.
My guides were very helpful, although I spent a great deal of time explaining that no London doesn’t have villages and yes we do have rice in Europe, and no we unfortunately we don’t grow bananas and tea. Also I spent a great deal of time trying to blag my way when I was asked what provision does our government provide for spinal damage? What is our most common locomotor disease? How many
The Bay of Bengal
My first view of The Bay of Bengal! doctors per 1000 in England? Hmm I realised how ignorant I was to the subject but have learned a great deal about it during my trip. Returning to the office on my second day we stopped so I could take some pictures of some parrots at the side of the road, they flew away, so instead I went and sat with a group of women working in the field picking peanuts, we sat tried to talk which didn’t work, so they gave me a bundle of peanuts and in return I gave them some bananas, we communicated through the beauty of reciprocation and was one of the highlights of my week
After two more days spent in the office working on a proposal and listening in on staff meetings I felt as though I had a real good understanding of how an NGO works at grass root level in the developing world, and it was satisfying to see for myself what I had been reading about during my time at university. I arrived back home on Saturday morning, was such a relief to be back in Bangalore and my apartment I have to say.
After a week reflecting
Ladies picking nuts
Joing rural women picking peanuts! on the cruel divides in our world I spent Saturday afternoon shopping in a mall that I discovered near to my house. Feeling bad whilst I was having my makeup done at the Elizabeth Arden counter I went for a coffee. Luckily I got talking with someone from HSBC, she is going to put me in contact with the CSR person at her work to help raise some fund, so this helped my conscience slightly. Following from my retail therapy I enjoyed a day in Le Meridian Spa on Sunday which I had won the week before. A day of pure indulgence, I had a manicure, pedicure, facial, full body scrub and full body massage, it was pure bliss. In the evening a group of us went to BBQ nation, all you can eat BBQ, and absolute delight after living on the same vegetarian food all week. Its strange you go into a restaurant, most places have a choice veg, or non-veg, you go in and ask for a meal, and they give you a meal, the same thing for everyone, everyday.
Anyway must do some work.
Next weekend I am off with the group to Hampi, luckily
by train this time!
Hope you are all keeping well!!
Lots of Love
Kate
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Helen C
non-member comment
Wow!
Thats all sounds so amazing, can't believe you're actually doing this stuff. Did you have to wear the headscarf?