A nice surprise in my in-box … my Project Mala’s sponsored child’s school report

Amidst the adverts, circulars and scams it was nice to see in my email inbox a message sent to me by Project Mala. The charity through which I sponsor a school child in India seems to have just the right balance between making me feel acknowledged and involved without being bombarded or pestered. The message I have just opened is particularly exciting as it tells me that they have updated the latest school report of the child I sponsor so all I have to do is login with my own username and password to find out how Neha and her family are.


The report tells me the percentage marks Neha has achieved in mathematics, English, Hindi and general knowledge. It also tells me her percentage attendance: a very impressive 96.7%. I think this is particularly admirable when I read further in the report that Neha lives 4km away. I am pleased to read elsewhere in this school report that she has not had any major illness.


At the end of the report are some brief ‘general comments’ which provide me with an interesting insight into what life is like for a family in eastern Uttar Pradesh, the area of India where Project Mala works. Apparently the parents of the child I sponsor are agricultural labourers. In December last year her father sold his cow (for £31.25). His January purchase is perhaps a ‘sign of the times’…. a new mobile phone.