A VISIT TO THE VILLAGE PROJECT
Barry Williamson
1974
A dirt track leads to 120 Families sheltering in mud and thatched huts, surrounded by the limitless fields and scrublands of the Indian Plains. Medical help is 10 miles away. There is no water or electricity, and the young teacher stands in his thatched hut listening to the sounds of children playing amongst distant huts as their parents explain their reluctance to accept his five-standard school. Miles away a busy official balances the needs of this village with that of a hundred others out of his limited budget.
This was a visit to that stereotype - the typical Indian village. A physical, social and cultural environment unchanged for centuries. But change it must, and the change must be for the better. The disruptive effects of modern technology on such a community must be ameliorated by their full involvement in that change. It was encouraging to see a hut being prepared for occupation by a graduate of the Madras School of Social Work, a young man of energy, ideas and sympathy whose task it will be to smooth the transition of this village into the twentieth century.
As we give our whole-hearted support to our Kirk in its attempts to provide basic facilities for this village, we should remember the young man who is there on our behalf, recognising that we must also extend our friendship and concern to the people of the village.
Barry Williamson
1974
A dirt track leads to 120 Families sheltering in mud and thatched huts, surrounded by the limitless fields and scrublands of the Indian Plains. Medical help is 10 miles away. There is no water or electricity, and the young teacher stands in his thatched hut listening to the sounds of children playing amongst distant huts as their parents explain their reluctance to accept his five-standard school. Miles away a busy official balances the needs of this village with that of a hundred others out of his limited budget.
This was a visit to that stereotype - the typical Indian village. A physical, social and cultural environment unchanged for centuries. But change it must, and the change must be for the better. The disruptive effects of modern technology on such a community must be ameliorated by their full involvement in that change. It was encouraging to see a hut being prepared for occupation by a graduate of the Madras School of Social Work, a young man of energy, ideas and sympathy whose task it will be to smooth the transition of this village into the twentieth century.
As we give our whole-hearted support to our Kirk in its attempts to provide basic facilities for this village, we should remember the young man who is there on our behalf, recognising that we must also extend our friendship and concern to the people of the village.
