Dairy Farm
Inspired by Sri Devanayagi from Holland, we started a dairy farm to feed the kids in the village. Unlike cows in the west which gives lots of milk, our cows give between 8 to 12 liters per day. The so call experts in India gave us advice that did not work. Having two cows mean either Devanayagi or Sri Param would have to take care of the cows, and also milk them. The milk produced by the cows that were bought through the donations were only enough to feed the kids who came here, and for Elengo who took care of the cows. Sri Param had to pay for the feeds other then the hay which was bought from the funds.
For us to sustain the dairy, more cows were needed, so Sri Param bought 6 young calfs, and four other milking cows. As we were limited by funds we bought cows of good breed who have not been cared for properly. In a year all these cows and the 6 calfs will produce a good quantity of milk.
The other problem we had is how and who will make sure that the kids from the village will get the milk, and not some adults selling the milk when we are not here, this has happened before. When we donated stationary to the local school for the kids, most of it never went to the children. We financed the building of the public hall in the village, the building materials that they asked for is there but nothing is done with them. As such we decided to take care of only kids who want help. We have given the kids one of the dormitory built for western students which houses a 7 boys, and daily feed about 10 to 15 kids. Some time also the elders in the village. All of them eat what we and our western students eat, together with us, this ends up to be an expensive process. For the kids to grow, we need to treat them as equal, and equality the enjoy..
So far the project is supported solely by Sri Param's income, and this income is derived from his tours offering Tantra and sound healing workshops. Since May last year he has not been able to tour, as such the funds are trickling down. The need to tour is enormous, but also he is the only person who can deal with the enormousness of the project. Lots has happen since June 2004, when he moved to live at the property. One has to visit us to see how quick a bush land has transformed into a beautiful center.
We like to say a special thanks to Devanayagi's friends in Holland who helped to start the dairy project.
In the next 11 months hte cows in our management will give birth to 7 new calfs, born in our property, after which the cows will start producing about 15 liters milk per day each. When this happen, we will be able to offer more children milk, and also employ more staff. April 2005, for the first time we were able to pay the wages for three staffs and part of the feed from the milk sold and also give milk to the kids who came here.
With your blessing we can do much more.
Click the photos below for enlarged view
