Move to Phalodi

Move to Phalodi

17, November 2008
12:00 noon

Yesterday Erik and I left the Jaisalmer office with Maga-Ram (and said goodbye to Vutaa Ram) and moved to the main URMUL office at Phalodi. Phalodi is about 160 km from Jaisalmer. We went by bus around 2:30pm and arrived at Phalodi around 5:30pm. We were greeted by Sujan Ram (who is the Chief Executive of URMUL), Bera Ram (another of the founding members of URMUL) and other URMUL staff. This is the main URMUL office so the majority of the workers are here. The URMUL campus consists of offices, a meeting hall, a kitchen, cook, garage full of motorbikes, and two guest rooms. Erik and I are staying in one of the guest rooms on the roof of the building. We have a huge roof top porch and have a good view of Phalodi. Behind the main office building (on the other side of the open courtyard) live eight URMUL families. Sujan Ram and his family, Bera Ram and his family, and then 6 others (whose names I don’t remember right now, because there are so many names and faces to match them to). We aren’t really sure what our work here will look like. We are thinking that we will still be visiting some nearby villages, like we did in Jaisalmer. However, now the focus will be less on female feticide issues and more on the weaving projects, and other development programs that URMUL runs (like children’s rights, birth registration, eye heath care, education). Today there is a big teacher training meeting here at the Phalodi office.

Last night after we were settled into our room, we had dinner and then Sujan Ram’s son, Khalu, showed us a bunch of photos on his computer. He is in his early 20s and has one son, Vinu, who is 4 ½ years old. Most of the photos were of his son, Vinu, and some of his wife. There were photos of a family trip to Jaipur. He also showed us videos he has made of his son dancing or doing English homework. The whole time that he was looking at his son’s pictures he was just beaming. Even though he only makes about 6000 rupees/month, he pays 1000/month in school fees for his son to attend an English-medium school. Just like Maga Ram who pays for extra out of school English tutoring for Rahul (and has also bought him lots of Leap Frog activity books), Khalu wants all the best education and opportunity for his son-everything he wasn’t able to have. He told us that he is taking lots of pictures and videos of his son now to give to him when he is older, like in his early twenties. We also found out that Sujan Ram’s family is of one of the 5 scheduled castes (which are some of the lowest castes in India).

Along with the photos of his family, Khalu showed us photos of Sujan Ram’s trip to South Africa. Sujan Ram went to South Africa to represent URMUL weaving at a museum exhibition in Johannesburg. He was gone for 20 days, and it was a VERY BIG deal that he had this opportunity. Sujan Ram’s son showed us pictures of Sujan Ram’s farewell, and how it was a very big deal because very few people have the opportunity to go abroad and so when one person does, it is a big deal and a huge source of pride for everyone in the family and the organization.

3:00pm

Erik and I just sat through the teacher training meeting for the past three hours. It was completely in Hindi, so we didn’t understand much of it, but I do know that they are talking about reading programs and a new library initiative. Even though I really wish I knew what everyone was saying, I think it is good to experience situations as an outsider. In my life, as a white, middle-class, educated woman, in the the United States I am so often used to living in the majority and having situations and opportunities accessible to me.