Carmelites of Mary Immaculate, a school for Nepal's marginalized

The testimony of Fr. Ajo Thelappilly, an Indian Catholic priest who has been a missionary for a decade in one of the poorest areas in the foothills of the Himalayas. "The local Church here is still in its infancy." The dream of being able to snatch the little ones from work in markets or city hotels.

Mumbai (AsiaNews) - On mission in a very poor area of western Nepal. With a big dream that is taking its first steps: that of opening a school in Dhangadhi to give a future to the children of those living in this extreme periphery at the foot of the Himalayas.

This is the missionary frontier of Fr. Ajo Thelappilly, an Indian Catholic priest of the Carmelites of Mary Immaculate (CMI), coordinator of the social works of Nepal Carmel Mata Samaj, an NGO that has been active in Nepal as part of the mission that this religious institute opened in the country for a decade.

"We arrived on March 22, 2011," Fr. Thelappilly recounts, "at the request of Msgr. Anthony Sharma, a Jesuit who was Nepal's first local bishop and later died in 2015. We belong to the St. John's province of our institute, which has missions outside our home country as well as in northern India. Currently here in Nepal we are six missionaries active in four different missions: Punarbas and Parasan in Kanchanpur district and in Dhangadhi and Phulwari in Kailali district, all in the westernmost part of the country."

Compared to the capital Kathmandu these are much more underdeveloped areas of Nepal.

"The inhabitants belong mainly to the Magar, Chhetri, and Tharu groups known for their ancient traditions and culture ," Fr. Ajo continues. "Agriculture provides them with a basic livelihood, but in local markets for their products they earn very little. Occasionally, then, the region receives heavy rains and subsequent flooding, which makes life even more difficult. There are also landless people who are completely dependent on daily work in neighboring India or in Dhangadhi, the most important city in the area. Most of their children work in hotels and markets as child laborers."

In this context, the missionaries' presence is through Nepal Carmel Mata Samaj, an NGO registered under the rules and regulations of the Nepalese government. Its board consists of seven Nepali nationals, four of whom are priests from the Vicariate of Nepal. Nepal Carmel Mata Samaj undertakes educational, health care and youth promotion programs for all strata of society. Now it is also about to open a school in Dhangadhi, which will be named Carmel School.

The choice to focus on education is obviously not coincidental: "This province, inhabited by 2.5 million people, has limited access to basic services," the Indian missionary says, "the poverty rate in official statistics reaches almost half the population. They are also areas characterized by widespread gender and caste discrimination. Lack of adequate education and economic development are serious obstacles to the general well-being of the population. Many schools are politically influenced and corrupt, with the quality of education taking a back seat. Most of these schools do not even have earthquake-proof measures, despite the fact that this region is very prone to earthquakes."

The involvement of local people in the new school project has been encouraging. "It was they," Fr. Thelappilly explains, "who helped us get the land for the school and made it available for a reasonable price. The local schools also issued certificates of non-opposition, showing their interest in the implementation of our school. Although they do not have financial resources, people here are always ready to serve in all our needs to realize the dream of a quality school."

A social work that is part of the commitment to the proclamation of the Gospel and the support of the small local Church that is the heart of the activity of the Carmelites of Mary Immaculate in Nepal. "The local Church is still in its infancy, but its presence is felt in every activity," Fr. Ajo concluded. "May God bless all of us in the service of His Kingdom".

INDIAN MANDALA IS THE ASIANEWS NEWSLETTER DEDICATED TO INDIA. WOULD YOU LIKE TO RECEIVE IT EVERY FRIDAY IN YOUR E-MAIL? TO SUBSCRIBE, CLICK HERE.

• Ecclesia
• in
• Asia