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In
a tiny village in a remote corner of India, a group
of concerned, dedicated individuals is making a difference
in the lives of nearly 100 people. The village is Purkal
Gaon, and it is literally "at the end of the world"
near the foothills of the Himalayas. Purkal Gaon's remote
location means villagers receive only a fraction of
government funding for education compared to India's
larger towns and cities. As a result, the village children
have always received an inadequate education, leaving
them unable to compete for jobs in India's booming economy.
But recently that all changed, thanks to the
support and involvement of Manpower's subsidiary Elan, the
European leader in IT and technical recruitment. Elan donated
£20,000 ($41,056) to the Purkal Youth Development Society
(PYDS). And in 2006, members of the Elan 25 Club eagerly volunteered
to visit the community. They rolled up their sleeves, and
went to work helping villagers finish the new facility. The
school now includes dedicated classroom facilities, two small
dormitories that house eight students and a modest residence
for two volunteer teachers. Our donation also funded the school's
connection to water and electricity. This represents quite
a change from the Society's first classroom - a converted
metal-roofed livestock shed.
The village children are now achieving fluency in English,
which will give them a substantial advantage in their
efforts to obtain placement in higher-quality education
institutions and, eventually, decent paying jobs.
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