Updates from Siddamma

2^nd Dec 2006

1) Resource Center Updates

2) Panchayat Elections

3) Tsunami Rehabilitation Update Housing and status of school

4) Project Freedom

1) Resource Center Updates

- Groundnuts yield was good. Sell part of the groundnuts and the weak ones can be used to make groundnut oil that can be sold in the market.

- Education activity is starting with 20 children. A small school building has been set up and will be working with children of quarry families. After the ban on child labor

- Cowshed has been constructed and cows have been bought for dairy farming.
Pics from the resource center.

2) The Sarpam and Bharathi Trust had updated the villages about the Panchayat Elections and 35 people stood for various positions. This year the Irulas won 15 Panchayat Presidents and are hopeful that this would translate into some access to the basic resources that have not reached them.

Here is an India Together Article on the Irula election and Bharathi Trust's role in the correction of the gross enumeration of their numbers in the census and hence a better representation in these elections.

3) Tsunami Rehabilitation - South Pichavaram housing – The rains in Cuddalore continues to be strong and it is impossible to start constructions presently. We hope to get construction underway end of Dec or mid-Jan. Given their present situation it is difficult to start educational activities till then.

4) Project Freedom - Project supported by Asha-Toledo. School for children of released bonded laborers in SK Nagar. School has been running and the govt has also allocated a person for the Balwadi. However, the government has stated that the present structure will not be ok for a school and the present location is not sufficient space. They have restructured the land for homes and allocated a larger plot of land for the school. They have also committed to build a primary school in the land allocated. Since we plan to work with the government in ultimately running the school we need to be patient with the construction of a permanent structure for the school.