Mitrataa Foundation - Partners

Rabindra is a sculptor and architect based in the historical town of Bhaktapur, a short distance from Kathmandu city. He has an enormous passion for traditional Nepalese design and has completed many restoration projects in and around Bhaktapur in order to preserve the traditional style of buildings. He is also working on a housing development in which all of the homes will be constructed in traditional design and style but with modern conveniences.

One of Rabindra's recent projects was the construction of a main school building for a government school in the small village of Phulbari. This village is located on a ridge near the towns of Panauti and Dhulikhel and has restricted road access. During the drive to Phulbari you are treated to stunning sweeping vistas of the Himalayas! However, despite the inspiring location, the area is typically quite poor and the school previously consisted of a few sheds which were unbearably hot in summer and too cold in winter. Rabindra has designed and managed the construction of a new building for the school which will contain the majority of the classrooms as well as a library, computer room, staff room etc. Room to Read, an NGO focusing on the establishment and maintenance of libraries to enable greater access to books for children, is providing assistance in setting up the library for the school.

Rabindra has assisted the Foundation in sourcing girls for scholarships from this school. He is also assisting us with sourcing some candidates from schools in nearby Panauti as well as any needy students he may become aware of in Bhaktapur itself. The Phulbari school will also benefit from a full day visit from the MLC group during Thulo April 2008. The group will be working on an art project with students from the school as well as painting a mural in one of the classrooms for junior students.

We also visited a Muscular Dystrophy (MD) Centre in Bhaktapur with Rabindra. It is a place that he has assisted to set up where mothers of boys with MD can bring their sons during the day. In Nepal, if a student is diagnosed with the disease they cannot continue their education in the normal school system. Teachers have been organised to come to the centre each day to provide basic classes to the boys as well as a physiotherapist to work with the boys. In addition to this, the centre manager has setup a paper-making workshop for the mothers so that they can pass the time whilst their sons attend the centre and they can make a little extra money as well. The paper products are then sold at a shop in Bhaktapur raising much needed funds to continue the centre. We are working with Rabindra on possible ways in which we can assist the centre further. One of their main goals is to raise enough funds to build extensions to the existing building so that more facilities can be provided and also more boys can attend each day.

During Thulo April 2008 the MLC group will be divided into small groups and each group will team up with one of the boys from the MD Centre. The groups will then compete in a treasure hunt which takes them through the streets and laneways of Bhaktapur whilst taking in all the key sites and some of the local Newari culture. The treasure hunt will end with a picnic lunch in the grounds of a traditional Newari house that Rabindra has beautifully restored. This day promises to be a once in a lifetime experience for these boys as well as provided a great way for the people from MLC to make a difference in someone's life whilst also being tourists!