About India: India is a huge and complex country that features enormous geographic and ethnic diversity. 65 different languages are spoken by Hindus, Muslims, Christians, and Sikhs. With the world’s second largest population (over one billion people) adding 25 million newborns each year, basic services we take for granted such as housing and education are hard to find for many. Despite these challenges, a gentle national character and deeply embedded system of conservative social norms and expectations have helped to maintain a peaceful, if somewhat chaotic domestic environment. Indians are warm people who show tremendous enthusiasm toward visitors. India has a wealth of geographic settings, from the snow-capped peaks of the Himalayas to verdant jungles and arid plains.

The Project: This project affords students the opportunity to interact with a motivated group of Indian people who have created a model for providing educational opportunities in under-served rural areas. It also allows students to enjoy the colorful culture of Rajasthan and to explore the desert (sometimes on camelback), climb through immense Moghul fortresses, and experience the wonder of wildlife in India, including camels, elephants, and monkeys. Close Indian friends of Putney created two schools in rural Rajasthan in 1992 whose mission has been to provide innovative private primary education to children, particularly girls, who have few educational opportunities. The schools are located in green areas amid arid terrain. Five years ago the headmaster of one of the schools invited Putney students to help finalize the construction of the school and to teach English. Because the design of the schools is institutional, our students have been given the opportunity to help design and build innovative structures and features that will capture the imaginations of students ages to 12.

Last summer, the Putney group built a basketball court and worked extensively with students in the schools, teaching English, playing games, and conducting musical and theatrical activities. The current headmistress, Parinita Ranpal, will serve as our host, and local people will help the group cook their meals. The weather is hot during the day, climbing into the 90s, but reasonable at night for sleeping.

Weekends: Excursions take students to the nearby city of Udaipur on the shore of Lake Pichola, to the desert near Jaisalmer to ride camels, and to Jodhpur to explore Moghul palaces covered with intricate ornamen­tation and surrounded by lush gardens. The group visits camel fairs, massive medieval fortresses looming on hilltops, and markets where brilliant fabrics set off the dull reds and browns of the desert. Students sample India’s aromatic cuisine, and learn about extraordinary traditional crafts. Kumbhalgarh Fort, one of the world’s largest citadels, is twenty miles away from our project site, as is one of the few remaining leopard sanctuaries.