Sashmita makes her home with her father and her mother. Carrying water, gathering firewood and gardening are her household duties. Her father is sometimes employed as a laborer and her mother maintains the home.
For fun, Sashmita enjoys jumping rope, bicycling and reading. She attends church activities, Bible class and Vacation Bible School regularly and is in high school where her performance is average.
Your love and support will help Sashmita to receive the assistance she needs to develop her potential. Please pray for her.
Sashmita lives in the hillside community of Nabarangpur, home to approximately 80,000 residents. Typical houses are constructed of dirt floors, adobe walls and thatched roofs. The primary ethnic group and language is Oriya.
The regional diet consists of maize, chicken, beef, rice and potatoes. Common health problems in this area include sickle cell anemia, jaundice, anemia and malaria. Most adults in Nabarangpur work as day laborers and earn the equivalent of $60 per month. This community needs improved sanitation, vocational training and adult literacy programs.
Your sponsorship allows the staff of Nabarangpur Child Development Center to provide Sashmita with Bible teaching, nutritious food, hygiene supplies, health screenings, field trips, talent hour, tutoring and school uniforms. The center staff will also provide spiritual gatherings and health and hygiene education for the parents or guardians of Sashmita.
Compassion opened its East India office in July of 2002 in Kolkata, (formerly Calcutta), the capital of West Bengal. Kolkata is located on India's east coast just above the Bay of Bengal near the Ganges River. Kolkata has a tropical climate. The office serves children in the states of West Bengal: Bihar, Orissa, Jharkhand, Chattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Sikkim, and Mizoram.
The aforementioned states, once the cradle of rich ancient Indian civilizations, are now among the poorest in the country. A large percentage of the population in this area is tribal and poor. The main religions are Hinduism and animism. The languages spoken in these areas are Odiya (formerly Oriya), Bengali, Chattisgarhi, Nepali, Mizo, and many tribal dialects and Hindi. This part of India is so resistant to the gospel that evangelists call it the "Graveyard Of Missions."
The people of India have had a civilization since 2500 B.C., when the inhabitants of the Indus River valley developed an urban culture based on commerce and sustained by agricultural trade. This civilization declined around 1500 B.C., probably due to ecological changes. Soon after, India succumbed to British rule for nearly two centuries before Mohandas Gandhi and other native Indians led peaceful protests to gain independence. British rule over India lasted until 1947. Since then, political instability, religious violence and tense relations with its Pakistani neighbors have troubled this beautiful part of the country.
Map of India
Child's Location: West of Bhubaneshwar
