Deep in the remote corners of Arunachal Pradesh’s Tawang district is a community, school, and home for 90 orphaned, destitute and abandoned children called the Jhamste Gatsal Children’s Community.
With the nearest town of Lumla situated 30 minutes away, the school started by Buddhist monk Lobsang Phuntsok aims to nurture at-risk children from surrounding impoverished villages, based on the principles of love, compassion, and wisdom.
The very phrase Jhamtse Gatsal is Tibetan for “garden of love and compassion.”
Coming to aid the process that Lobsang started in 2006 is National Geographic explorer Mike Libecki and his 14-year-old daughter Lilliana, who has travelled to 26 countries across all seven continents with her father, besides undertaking five major expeditions.
The duo is collaborating with the computer hardware giant, Dell, reports IANS.
They helped the community install 20 new laptops, printers, set-up internet access and impart computer literacy to both children and teachers at the children’s community. In addition, they have also installed new solar panels and generators for both the computer centre and community.
“We worked closely with the community. All of the kids in the community are orphans, or they have come to live there because they have family issues. They are all first-generation learners, none of the families of these kids have an education. They want the children to go to college; without having computers and internet, they will lag behind and not be able to do. In the times we live in, we need to be technologically advanced and savvy to make progress,” Mike told IANS.
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Mere installation, however, isn’t enough. If the kids don’t know how to utilise these computers and internet, there is little use of such an endeavour. Besides imparting training for these children and teachers, they are also reportedly working to ensure that these systems run on solar power in an area where regular electricity supply isn’t forthcoming.
All the equipment was shipped directly from the United States, and Dell employees, as part of the company’s Give Back Project, came along to assist in the installation process.
(Edited by Gayatri Mishra)