THE CONSTRUCTION OF THE NEW SCHOOL

Great progress has been made on the new school, with the hole in the ground that was there in January, transformed to a near to completion first story. The slab is set, the foundations built and once the concrete has settled, the new school will be well on the way to complete.

These photos are of the work in progress, as at April 2008 The new school is located right behind the existing school and once finished, the existing school will be reconfigured as volunteer teacher rooms including a new bathroom.

Loden is also building a pathway from the village road to the school to enable better access for the children, plus a children's playground on the land in front of the school. The Mayel Lyang Academy will be a wonderful community school in one of the most striking locations in Sikkim.

ABOUT MAYEL LYANG AND THE LEPCHAS

Mayel Lyang Academy is a junior school in Passingdang, Upper Dzongu, North Sikkim, India. It is a Lepcha school, started by Loden Lepcha and run by Loden and his wife Nimkit.

The school has 50 students, and Loden is currently building a new, larger school on the land next to the existing school. The new school will house twice as many students.

The Lepchas are the indigenous people of Sikkim and some land in the nearby borderlands in West Bengal, Bhutan and Nepal. They are nature worshippers and call themselves 'children of mother nature'.

Mayel Lyang is the Lepcha name for the Dzongu Lepcha Reservation in North Sikkim. Mayel Lyang means Land of Hidden Paradise.

For queries about Mayel Lyang Academy (including information on how to support the construction of the new school) please contact: Loden G Lepcha, Mayel Lyang Academy, Passingdang, Upper Dzongu, North Sikkim, India.

Or, email kerrylittle@bigpond.com