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A cheque for $9,500.00 donated to Ananda School in North India to construct a well.
The Kullu Valley is situated in North India at the foothills of the Lesser Himalayas. It came to the attention of the Rotary Club of Coburg that a number of children had been abandoned and were being housed in a schoolroom in Buntar. There are currently 170 students attending the school who pay $2.00 (AUD) per month (there is no free education in India) although here the rest are not charged a fee. As there was sufficient land it was decided to construct a home on the site and accommodation was provided for 25 children. The Rotary Club of Coburg and Barclay's Foundation [Singapore] combined to jointly fund the project.
Coburg Rotarian PP Ian Christian visited the school and home last November to investigate the project. All was well, but due to the increased numbers of children and lack of water it was necessary to purchase this valuable resource for the home and school. Two things were needed. Firstly if a well were to be constructed this would enable valuable financial resources to be directed to the children instead of purchasing water. Secondly the school had no science and mathematics textbooks.
Some funds were raised privately and the balance to build the well was donated by the Rotary Club of Coburg. At the meeting of 10th June 2009 a cheque for $9,500.00 was presented to Dr Singh who is the Australian representative for the children's home.
A total of 130 schoolbooks were acquired from two local secondary colleges, Maribyrnong Secondary College and Mill Park Secondary College. The books have also been donated to the school. This project has concluded but the need is endless in that part of the world, but we feel we have made a difference. The Rotary Club of Kullu has assisted in this project.
