Oxfordshire visitors welcomed by ten-year-old in remote village, writes PETER CANN

Two teachers from Oxfordshire recently made the trek to India in order to meet one of the girls their school have been sponsoring, through the international charity ActionAid.

Inspired by an article in the charity's magazine Common Cause, Fiona Weikert and Lynne Hatch, who teach at Cranford House in Moulsford, flew out to the Sundargarh district of Orissa to visit ten-year-old Sukhamati Munda, who has been a beneficiary of the charity for the last five years.

Travelling for two days by air and rail via Kolkata and Rourkela, with a two-hour drive over mud tracks, Fiona and Lynne finally met Sukhamati at her village school.

Accompanied by her friends, Sukhamati presented the visitors with garlands of flowers and then performed a dance and sang a song. Fiona and Lynne presented Sukhamati's teacher with a scrapbook of pictures from the pupils of Cranford.

The visit continued with an invitation to a local meeting where the villagers discussed the work of ActionAid. This included the setting-up of a savings scheme to improve homes and buy livestock, battling with a local landlord who planned to divert a crucial water supply and opposing the building of a road for the local steel industry which would disrupt the village.

Bought with funds Cranford pupils had raised by spending the summer term selling homemade cakes and decorative boxes, Fiona and Lynne then presented the school with a solar-powered television, and, in the afternoon, organised a game of hockey using equipment also bought with the proceeds.

The day ended with a visit to Sukhamati's parents and her family and have lunch before bidding an emotional farewell.

Fiona Weikert said: "It was an incredible experience that I will never forget.

"The atmosphere was wonderful, with everyone happy to see us and we felt incredibly humbled and privileged by their welcome.

"Since returning, both Lynne and I have done presentations of our trip to emphasise how worthwhile it is to sponsor a child.

"The children at school have gained a huge amount from our visit and continue to be enthusiastic about Sukhamati and her life. I would recommend anyone to sponsor a child, especially families with young children."

ActionAid works in 50 countries in Africa, Asia and the Americas to fight global poverty and injustice. For more information, visit www.actionaid.org