14th January 2019

14th January 2019
In which a meeting with Dr Santi brings me to tears

After all that we'd heard already from all directions, we were very much looking forward to meeting the new Director of RUHSA, Dr Santidani. Just before our appointment time she came out of her office and warmly introduced herself to each of us in turn. Given how many hours we have spent outside that office waiting for a series of different directors over the years to deign to see us, this was a good start. Santi, as she introduced herself, is a small woman who comes across as very warm and smiley immediately. No ceremony is to be stood on with her, you feel. 

Over the next almost hour and a half an extremely encouraging conversation took place between us. She is a listener and a communicator. She grasps ideas very quickly and responds to them and in this she reminds me of the original director, Daleep. She told us that they are doing a wide-ranging review at the moment of Ruhsa's aims and activities in order to plan for the next few years. Amongst the ideas which strike a real chord with us, and which tie in with activities in which we have already been involved are: targetted career advice for school children; support for bright children who haven't had the opportunity to learn English yet ( which will hold them back in their careers); targetted interventions for those children whose families do not/ cannot support their education; 

mental health support for adolescents ( substance abuse, suicide prevention); assessment of special needs in infants and programmes of support for all children with special needs. This last one is a huge issue for special needs are barely considered in much of India and many children and their families will go unrecorded and unsupported. It is obvious that Santi wants to think large scale on this issue in particular and she is already talking and planning with a CMC paediatrician. 

In talking about the importance of involving parents in their children's education I mentioned that this had been one of the foundation principles of the learning approach which we had introduced at Pachaikili. Santi listened with interest and then suggested that we could use our centre to model early years practice and spread it to balwadi teachers in the area. This is when I could have burst into tears, because of course it was what we very much had hoped to do when we first set up the school as a model. We could all of us have gone on talking for hours but Santi of course has a very busy workload. Eventually we had to stop but she suggested a meeting with her on 28th January to discuss some of these things in more details and she invited us to supper on Thursday too. She also said that we must feel free to drop by at her house! 

As we all agreed afterwards, what an inspirational woman, and what hope now for Ruhsa's future! This poster is pinned up next to her desk.

And Alleluia to that! 

In the afternoon we went to Seetaramanpet and I got to see the new and amazing house which Raghu has built for his family. It is beautiful and all funded by the work Raghu does in Thailand. He has such a sweet and grateful family ( more touching of our feet to honour us, by Mageshwari, Raghu's mum)  We are all very much looking forward to the engagement party for Raghu and his intended bride Janani, on Sunday, in Chennai, for which Raghu has organised three mini buses. 150 locals are going!! 

After an absolutely terrifying ride home through KVKuppam rush hour we stopped for drinks 

at Grabb a coffee. Suddenly a gaggle of student nurses appeared who were very keen to take selfies with us, though heaven alone knows why! They were particularly taken with my hat I think!