THE INDEPENDENT SCHOOLS

For a variety of reasons some school have remained outside the CTSA schools program, although they all follow the same academic syllabus. The Tibetan Children's Village, Dharamsala and the Tibetan Homes Foundation , Mussoorie both began as independent projects catering mainly for orphaned children , semi -orphans and children from destitute families, and have attracted aid form many different sources.

The village started as a nursery -cum transit-camp and then, with extensive help from the SOS Children's Village organization headquarters in Vienna, expanded into a school and village with twenty -nine Homes for its extremely underprivileged children. It also helps to run other schools, notably the Leh Middle School in Ladakh and the small residential school at Patlikhul in the Kullu valley.

The Homes foundation offers shelter, food and loving care to its otherwise destitute children, who are housed in twenty-six 'Homes in the charge of foster mothers or parents. The Homes Foundation children attend the nearby CTSA residential school in Mussoorie, expect for the very young ones who go to classes up to Grade III at the Homes Foundation itself.

KULLU VALLEY SCHOOLS
Two small day schools at Kullu and Pondoh, with 20 and 27 pupils respectively, have been founded for the poor children in the valley. Each school receives a grant from the Tibetan Children's Village in Dharamsala, to cover teachers salaries, room rent, books and (at Pondoh only) a mid -day meal for the students.

The little school at Manali, which was started by the parents themselves, was taken over by this council in 1978. We are fortunate to have been offered the kind assistance of the Tibetan Development Foundation, Holland which has agreed to help expand the school into a residential one, once suitable land can be found in Manali for permanent settlement.

DHARAMSALA DAY SCHOOL
There are two day schools in Dharamsala. One, at Gangchen Kyishong or the headquarters of the Tibetan Secretariat, was started in 1978. Since its inspection ,the school has received the generous support of the relief organization IM of Sweden, which gives a regular grant for the running expenses. The pupils are mostly the children of Tibetan Government in-Exile staff members.

The other school, situated in the upper township of Mcloed Ganj, initially received help from Swiss Aid to Tibetans before being taken over full by the Tibetan Children's Village, which pays for the staff salaries, stationary and text-books, and medical expenses. Most of these children come from poor families where the parents are road laborers or engaged in small trade.

SIKKIM
There are two Tibetan schools in Sikkim, one at Kewzing and the other at Enchey. The former is a primary school, established at a Tibetan refugee settlement in south Sikkim in 1972. We provide text-books and depute teacher to this school, who are then paid by the settlers themselves. The school receives some aid from the State Government of sikkim.

In the early 1960's, 150 Tibetan Children were admitted to the Enchey school at Gangtok, run by the Government of Sikkim. Now that number has more than doubled and the Tibetan Children at the school receive a stipend from CTSA.

NEPAL
There are seven small day schools in Nepal, namely:

1. Jawalakhel
2. Swayambu
3. Tashi Ling
4. Tashi Palkhiel
5. Solo Khumbu
6. Shyamey Wangphel
7. Dorpathan