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Changing Lives, A Rural Development Project in South India

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Changing Lives, A Rural Development Project in South India

  • Welcome
  • Education
  • Health
  • Employment
  • Fundraising Events
  • How to Donate
  • Newsletters
  • Contact Us

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Friends of Mettupalayam Trust

2 days ago

Friends of Mettupalayam Trust
Huge congratulations to Jen and Sarah, daughters of trustees Hugo and Jean, have recently completed the Nice half ironman, raising funds for Friends of Mettupalayam. They have well exceeded their initial target but would welcome further donations in recognition of their magnificent efforts!The link to their Justgiving page iswww.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/jenandsarah-welshAs you will imagine, fundraising over the last 18 months has been heavily affected by the pandemic, so we are really grateful for everyone who contributes. ... See MoreSee Less

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Friends of Mettupalayam Trust

5 days ago

Friends of Mettupalayam Trust
Nutritional support continues for the Irula tribal folk at Ullampakkam.During my last visit with Hugo and Jean, in December 2019, we identified a serious health issue in this small tribal community, with all of the children grossly underweight with signs of long term malnutrition. The adults also were suffering, and their diet mainly consisted of rice. Since then, we have supplied vegetables each week and continued to monitor their health.These folk work as woodcutters and stone cutters, occupations, like many that have suffered from the various lockdowns.This community consists of the families that remained in our area after we freed them from debt slavery some 20 years ago. We therefore feel very attached, especially to the younger married folk like Mari, Patchyammal and Selvi who were very young children then and who now have their own children. ... See MoreSee Less

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Friends of Mettupalayam Trust

2 weeks ago

Friends of Mettupalayam Trust
For today's dinner at the Crakehall School, Mettupalayam- cluster beans grown by the children in the school garden.Don't you think they will taste extra special? ... See MoreSee Less

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Friends of Mettupalayam Trust

2 weeks ago

Friends of Mettupalayam Trust
The multi purpose shelter at Kavakarai, being built for use as a schoolroom and general purpose community shelter.The Irula tribal folk living here mostly earn a living as sandal makers/ menders and are highly discriminated against. Their children sometimes go to the Govt primary school, but IRDT have been providing an education and substantial mid day meal for them for the last 18 months, as their school has been closed. In time, we hope to build proper walls, meantime the community are helping to raise the floor, above flooding levels. ... See MoreSee Less

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Friends of Mettupalayam Trust

3 weeks ago

Friends of Mettupalayam Trust
As well as growing standard crops such as rice and groundnuts, Venkat is always looking for new crops or varieties that could help local farmers improve profitability and therefore help their economy.This crop is a variety of gram, not normally grown in our area but which could prove successful as a follow on crop from rice. It is an 80 day crop which requires less rainfall. Thanks to all your support, our farm can afford to try new and innovative crops as well as providing work for local villagers. ... See MoreSee Less

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Friends of Mettupalayam Trust

4 weeks ago

Friends of Mettupalayam Trust
As promised, our latest newsletterAugust 2021Hello FriendsAs the coronavirus situation improves for us here in the UK, we thought it a good time to review both the situation in and around our project, as well as the support your contributions have been able to provide to the local community during the pandemic. As we write, Venkat tells us that the covid 19 case level is relatively low in the area, with just 30 (recorded) deaths across Tamil Nadu in the latest week. However, the position in neighbouring Kerala is much worse and we continue to share our experience of second and third waves and the lead role Venkat and his team play in using and encouraging appropriate precautions.The Aid programme. Throughout the eye of the pandemic, Venkat, Anand and our teaching team identified the groups and individuals in most need. The lockdowns paralysed business and travel, meaning that many had no work and no income. Apparently almost all local charities also stopped providing their services. Many local people get by on a day-to-day basis with no savings. This is particularly true of the various tribal settlements. Also at highest risk were the elderly (they are traditionally last in line for food) and the disabled. At the peak of last year, our team were buying and providing vegetables and rice for well over 1000 families. The programme also brought emotional support during such a difficult time as well as providing an opportunity for our team to encourage social distancing, mask-wearing and good hygiene. Only someone with the respect and depth of local knowledge of our project director could have made this logistical wonder happen. Thank you all for your continued financial support and the numerous one-off donations that we have received to help make this possible. The project continues to provide a limited food support for the most-needy local people.One of our friends has also gathered funding for the provision of a rudimentary structure for the poor tribal group in nearby Manampathi. This will provide a much-needed place of shelter for children and adults to meet and learn. Thank you. Growing Together.Growing crops and food are an integral part of the project and this crisis has strengthened Venkat’s will to encourage more local families to grow their own produce. Growing Together is an ongoing project that has begun to take root both in Mettupalayam and with friends in the UK. In Mettupalayam, Venkat is planning a kitchen garden project, encouraging local people to “grow their own”. This will start with a workshop with our schoolchildren and their parents once we have been able to source sufficient vegetable seeds. The photo here is of some delicious-looking Okra planted recently by the schoolchildren.In the UK, anyone can be involved and share their growing experiences, photographs and thoughts via an administered ‘Growing Together’ Facebook page. Children from nurseries, schools and residents of care homes have all contributed and it provides a safe platform to share and an opportunity to harvest more than vegetables and flowers with up-to-date information from Mettupalayam and comparisons with things closer to home. It is hoped this will become established and develop into next year so please feel free to get involved as an individual, school or community group and link it to possible fundraising opportunities.Venkat is also a major figure in the local farming community. As organiser of the 1000 strong small-farmer cooperative, he regularly hosts meeting for this group. This has evolved significantly over the last year with the development and build of a seed processing unit and nut oil production plant on our project farmland. The building was built with local government finance and provides a central place for farmer members to bring and trade their crops.Schools. Government primary and secondary schools have been closed throughout the pandemic and as you will imagine online learning is not an option for all except a few richer families. However, our own schools at Mettupalayam and Nambikki have remained open bar two months last year when forced to close by the government lockdown. At one stage our teachers even went out to the local villages to teach in the open. We have continued to pay our teaching staff throughout the pandemic, and they have been instrumental in both identifying those in need and being part of the organisation and delivery of the food aid programme. During the summer break the teachers met with Venkat to think anew about the school curriculum. As they said, “the national syllabus is created by people in suits in the large cities”. So, whilst maintaining core required elements, they have collectively redesigned the way they teach each subject from the perspective of local children. For example, in Maths, they now ask children to count and measure everyday things like the number of steps they take to get to school each morning. Even more illuminating was the exercise to find out their own family weekly incomes and the breakdown of how and where it is spent. Venkat says that the amount spent by some men on alcohol provided a powerful discussion. Science too is formed around how relatable things work – like the bicycles or buses they use to get to school. Field trips include visits to the farm to see how the food they eat is grown and harvested. Also, recently a tour of the new seed and oil processing plant was organised. Here the children learned the cost of different oil production and the value added by the processes – which provided scope for more school maths exercises! In some ways, the hiatus caused by the pandemic provided the spark for this review, which has provided renewed motivation for the teaching team too. As always, Venkat is marvellously philosophical and optimistic that good things always follow.UK news and fundraising. Thanks to friends who have decluttered during lockdown, done several car boot sales, coffee mornings and given the proceeds to FOM.As restrictions lift it is wonderful to hear of Friends who are planning to hold a variety of events to fundraise which include an afternoon tea with homemade jam and scones and an opportunity to buy chutney and produce, and a soup and sandwich lunch again made with harvest produce. If you fancy holding a Curry event, please check out the authentic recipes and ideas that can be found on the Fundraising section of the irdt website at www.irdt.co.uk. There you will also find an Autumn Quiz to download - thanks to residents at The Millings for their round of cunning questions. If there are any schools or community groups who would welcome talks, we are happy to provide photo resources and chat in person as rules allow or perhaps even by Zoom.As always thank you so much for your continued interest and support. Stay safe and well. Contact us:Adele Eldridge Francis and Rosie Muncaster Hugo and Jean Welsh01969 650618 01677 425961 01904 769248adeleeldridge@gmail.com fmuncaster@hotmail.com hugo.welsh30@gmail.com ... See MoreSee Less

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Friends of Mettupalayam Trust

1 month ago

Friends of Mettupalayam Trust
Our latest newsletter will shortly be posted out, please let Francis know if you are receiving a printed copy and would be happy to rely on either the IRDT website or Facebook copy. ... See MoreSee Less

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Friends of Mettupalayam Trust

1 month ago

Friends of Mettupalayam Trust
The local health Centre situated in Manampathi wanted to hold a Covid 19 check up so Venkat organised this and around 500 people came!Results were available within 2 days, so far we haven't had any feedback.Locally, the virus seems to be at a low level, helped by the social distancing, mask wearing and hand washing rules in place.Sadly, Government schools remain closed, and Venkat advised that many children have now lost their enthusiasm for education, and have started to regress. Pleased to report that our school remains open, and we continue with the tribal education near Manapathi. ... See MoreSee Less

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Friends of Mettupalayam Trust

2 months ago

Friends of Mettupalayam Trust
After Rosie and Hannah had a very disappointing but enjoyable day fundraising at the Saving Yorkshire Dogs annual show in Bedale Park, on Saturday, Karen had an amazing coffee morning in Upper Poppleton, near York. Yesterday I was able to pay in £550!Fundraising from events like these has, of course, been suspended for many months, so we are very grateful to so many of our supporters who have made extra donations during the pandemic. ... See MoreSee Less

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Friends of Mettupalayam Trust

2 months ago

Friends of Mettupalayam Trust
These photos are from the Irula tribal colony at Kavakarai, near Manampathy. Venkat has now been supporting these very poor folk for over a year, with food parcels, hot midday meals and education for the children, since the Govt schools have now been fully closed for around 18 months!You can imagine the difficulty in studying in the full sun, or during the wet seasons. Thanks to a very generous supporter and his friends, and with some input from IRDT funds, Venkat has now been able to erect a very cost effective shelter on a raised platform. If and when this is no longer required, it can be disassembled and the steelwork and roofing materials can easily be reused.In other news, our Crakehall School, Mettupalayam role has increased to around 80 children even though we are officially unable to hold formal lessons in school. I will post more photos in due course, but years 4 and 5 recently visited the farmers cooperative processing plant, to learn what is going on, and to see the new seed processing machinery. ... See MoreSee Less

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