Volunteer Work in Delhi

The NGO I signed up to do volunteer work in Delhi is called Volunteering Activity.  This organization has been running volunteer projects in Delhi and Dharamshala for the last ten years. The NGO’s founder, Ananta Kumar, and the project’s coordinator Arjun are very friendly and caring. Prior to starting our volunteer work, all volunteers attended a very helpful orientation session. VA's webiste: < http://volunteeringactivity.org/index.html >.

 

TEACHING ENGLISH TO CHILDREN

My sister and I spent four weeks in Delhi, teaching English to children and to women in a small school in the Nehru slum, in Faridabad. The residents in this slum knew a few words in English, but they spoke mostly Hindi language.

Children of Morning Light School

The Morning Light School currently supports around 40 children, who are divided into 2 classes ran by 2 young teachers (Sheela and Anita). It’s extremely hot inside the small classes, which have no desks or chairs. The students seat on the floor with their legs crossed, one nearly on top of another, so they can all fit in the class. They also have very little school material. Dine and I gave pencils to all the children who didn’t have one, but some of them would leave their new pencils at home and keep asking us for more.

Sheela scowling at me for disturbing her class J

Due to the intolerable heat and frequent electricity power cuts in Delhi, we often had to run our English classes outside, in the school patio. Although outdoor classes were not always ideal due to the distraction brought to the students by people and animals passing by next to the school patio. Curious men, women and other children (who are not attending school) often stopped by to watch our classes. Sometimes they even started talking to us or to the students in the middle of a class. We then had to ask them to leave, so we could keep teaching.

Outdoor Class - Colouring Activity

Pig crossing corridor next to the school patio

THE EXTREME SMELLS OF INDIA

There were no toilets in the school, so we tried not to drink too much water while we were there. When the children needed to use the toilet some would go home, but the majority would pee on the open sewage next to the school. The hardest thing for me working in this school was the sewage’s dreadful smell. L Open sewages are found everywhere throughout the slum, so the children and teachers are quite used to their rotten smell.

Open sewage next to the school

Another strong and frequent smell in the slum and throughout Delhi is of cow dung, but this one I can put up with without a problem. I think I’m even getting used to it. J Cow dung is very useful for the poor community in India. The women make cow dung cakes, which they use as fuel to light up the fire for cooking in their homes. They also use them to patch up the walls in their homes or huts. The extremes in India are a constant though. When I don't smell the cow manure on the streets, I smell the very good aromas of incense sticks, coming from the temples and houses nearby. India is a blow to all our senses!

Woman patching up wall with cow dung

WOMEN EMPOWERMENT PROJECT

To this day women in India have little voice. The project of teaching English to teenagers and young female adults. was to give them a better life prospect. The biggest challenge we faced teaching English to Indian women was the communication gap. We need a reasonable good translator, who could speak Hindi and English to help us with our classes. Our 12 years old translator Julie, although inexperienced, tried to help us as best as she could. The teenagers and young adults were really keen on attending our classes. It was a pleasure teaching English to them! 

Teaching  English to women with Julie's help

At times it was very tiring trying to communicate with the children and the women in the slum, with our broken Hindi and their broken English, but they were always so happy to see us. They always had big smiles on their faces. To contribute in a small way giving these children and women hope of a better life made this experience well worth.

Eager learner