Tibetan Children's Village, Dharamsala Cantt, H.P. India is a non-profitable charitable institution caring for orphans, semi-orphans and destitute Tibetan children in exile. From its very humble beginning thirty seven years ago, it has today become a thriving educational integrated community for not only destitute Tibetan children in exile but also for hundreds of children escaping from Tibet in recent years. It has branches extending from Ladakh in the north to Bylakuppe in the south with over 12,000 children under its care.

John Emery, Project Assistant ot Sabre Foundation, U.S.A. contacted the Head Office with its proposal, we immediately welcomed the project. He was specially impressed by the important role played by our President in bringing up the children for more than thirty years and he decided to donate the books this time to Tibetan Schools in India. So with directions from the TCV Head Office, TCV School, Dharamsala Cantt, was handed the responsibility of receiving and distributing a shipment of 1016 cartoons of books on behalf of Tibetan schools in India.

RECEIPTS:

The shipment 1016 cartons of books reached TCV Dharamsala Cantt, on 17th September 1997 and was unloaded at Tibetan Children's Village, Lower Dharamsala, due to heavy rain. On the same night we have sent our truck to collect the books from Lower TCV School.

DISTRIBUTIONS:

The listing and sorting out of books started on 18th September 1997. This took almost three weeks involving three librarians and an office staff. Nearby schools like Lower TCV, Bir, Gopalpur and Dharamsala area took their books in first week of October. Schools in South India, Ladakh, Delhi etc took their books after the school Founding Anniversary was over in the late October. The Directors of both the schools were present during the handing over of the books. So by the end of October all the books were distributed but we waited for the reports to reach us trom each school. Schools like Ladakh where the communication is difficult we are yet to receive their report.

The final consolidated list of books distributed is enclosed as annexure 1.

The final detailed list with names of the books distributed against each schools/institutions is enclosed as annexure II a.b.c.d.

SHIPPING AND TRANSPORTATION:

The books reached here safely without any problems and damages on 17th September evening.

UTILIZATION:

With the receipt of these valued gifts, it not only added more life to our libraries but also it made tbe library a place which a student never want to leave. We have an extremely limited budget for school library books, and on top of that such valued books are extremely hard to find in India, even if you try to find ways and means to pay for it. The very tight budget for school library books makes the library resources scanty. These new books are a breath of fresh air for our children and teachers alike. Our children flips through the pages of these books carefully like a bee sucking honey from tbe beautiful flowers of spring.

Wlth the receipt of these 1016 cartons of books we were able to improve the resource and reference section of our teachers. The children's visit to the libraries became frequent and it highly enriched 14 school libraries and 10 different offices. We gave in-service training to all our school librarians (TCV Main and branch schools) with the help of Miss Joyce-Jeffries, a Canadian Public Librarian on how best we can utilize and maintain these books. We have alloted one period a week for each class, so that the students can have at least one hour a week and prolonged the library timings trom 8.30 a m. to 6.00 p m. so that the students can visit it even after the calss hours. The libraries remain open on all gazette holidays, so that the children can have access to the new books (Photographs taken at different Tibetan schools in India after the receipt of these books)

School is a temple of learning and Sabre Foundation, USA enriched our temple of learning with the most valued gift a child could ever dream of. We are deeply grateful to this foundation for the timely support and help. We look forward to having a long association and help from this generous foundation in the future.

On behalf of the children and staff of all the Tibetan Schools in India, we deeply thank Sabre Foundation, Cambridge, MA, USA and all the other organizations which made this project possible.

THANK YOU ALL

DISTRIBUTION OF DONATED BOOKS FROM SABRE FOUNDATION, CAMBRIDGE. MA, USA TO TIBETAN SCHOOLS IN INDIA.