RAMBRAI

MOUNT CALVARY PARISH, RAMBRAI

(Estd. 1997)  INS 10

Rambrai; W.K. Hills Dist.

Meghalaya – 793119

BRIEF HISTORY

As early as 1950, the missionaries from Marbisu began making contacts with the villages of Rambrai. With the creation of Nongstoiñ Parish in 1966, the contacts became more frequent and the number of Catholics steadily increased among the Mahrams of the areas.          Fr. George Vanni, while stationed at Nongstoiñ, dedicated much of his energy to the development of the mission centre at Rambrai. The efforts resulted in the creation of Mount Calvary Parish of Rambrai.  The new Parish, carved out of Nongstoiñ Parish was officially inaugurated in1997. After the death of Fr. Vanni on 10^th November 2003, Fr. Peter Syiemlieh assumed charge as Parish Priest in March 2004. Fr. Sylvester Synrem, Fr. Isaac Mattappillil, Fr. Cornelius Panna and Fr. Justin Lyngkhoi served as Assistant Priests for short terms. The parish mourned the sudden passing away of Fr. Justin on 29^th July 2008. In 2009, Fr. Bernard Pala and Fr. Parackatte Mathew were appointed Assistant Priests. Presently, Fr. Nonglang Telesphor is the Parish Priest and Vice- Rector and Fr. Kharshandi John is the Assistant Priest.

St. John Bosco Secondary School (proceeding Higher Secondary) at the Parish Centre provides education to the people in an around Rambrai. There is a boarding-house that caters to the need of those boys from the far flung villages of the parish and some are from Nongstoin area. The network of primary and upper primary schools in the villagers caters to the education of the children.

            The FMA sisters set up St. Mary Mazzarello convent in 1996 and rendered dedicated service in the Parish, at the School as well as in the Villages the Parish Council and the various Lay Associations like the Seng Rangbah, the Seng Kynthei and the Seng samla collaborate in the running of the parish.

ABOUT THE PLACE AND THE PEOPLE

They are spread out in 80 villages, in different hills of Nongstoin district, of West Khasi Hills. All the inhabitants are indigenous people belonging the Khasi community of the Mongloid origin. About 95 % are Christians Approximately, the whole area is 400 Sq KM, bordering the state of Assam. Some villages are very small with just 6 to 10 families and are hidden in the hilly forests. These villagers need special care and guidance, as they are completely cut off from outside world. The light of modern life style has not reached them yet, and most of the youth get married in their teens; so they have big number of children. To have 10 or 12 children is nothing special for this area, but very few survive, as the child mortality is very high. This is because of ignorance, they fall easy victims of different diseases.

MAP OF MOUNT CALVARY PARISH, RAMBRAI

Socio-Economic background of Rambrai area.

The people depend entirely on agriculture, as their primary source for their livelihood. The practice of shifting cultivation has stopped only a few years back. There are no means of earnings, except forest products and felling trees. Often men-folk, migrate to different places in search of works and livelihood, leaving their families wives and children to fend for themselves. So the children start working in their tender age, in order to supplement the meagre income of their parents. The plight of the people of Rambrai area is worsen due to lack of Roads and communications. The only road that is blacked topped in the whole area is only 22 KM, connecting Rambrai to Nongstoin, the District Head Quarter. The next motorable road throughout the year is Rambrai–Mawdoh (15 Km), and the last motorable PWD road is Rambrai – Sohmynthar, 5 KM only. All the people from the rest of the villages of Rambrai area have to make on foot to come to Rambrai or to go anywhere else. This is more so difficult, in times of sickness and to transport essential commodities. Some do transport and carry such commodities on horse backs and mules or else they have to carry all by themselves. Such is the plight that we face. It is the same old story with regards to medical care and health services that the Government provides the citizens. Majority of the villages of Rambrai are infested with malaria. Consequently, many people, both young and old, lost their precious lives due to the lack of medical care. Needless to mention about electricity. Even if the connections are provided, regular supply of electricity is only on paper. As soon as the rainy season begins, the whole area is in total darkness most of the times. Most people have to depend either on kerosene lamps or solar lantern. The daily wage for agricultural work is very low at Rs. 80/- per man and Rs. 50/- per woman. The people do not get 150 days of work in a year. Therefore, the problem of unemployment and underemployment are the main causes of their poverty, ignorance and all sorts of sub-human living conditions

The dependence of the aged, the women and the children and the expenditure on health care, education, the high cost of essential commodities have made the earning classes in ‘acute poverty trap’. As a consequence the children are deprived of education, nutrition, healthcare, housing, employment etc. In such economic conditions of the people, St. John Bosco Secondary School, deserves your financial support, that it may bring about change in the lives of many children of Rambrai Area.

The people are still deprived of proper transport facilities and communication even today in the 21^st centuries, after so many years of independence and after attaining its own statehood since 1972.

The area of the Parish is really vast, up to Kamrup District of the State of Assam. It consists of 90 big and small villages, of which 58 villages are with Catholic presences and 32 without.

The Parish/Pastoral work is being carried out with the collaboration of the Salesian Sisters (FMA), both in the schools (2 sisters) as well as pastoral work, touring the villages (1 sister). They also render valuable service in the health sector, through the dispensary at the centre. But much of the pastoral work is being carried out by the laity, either by the full time Head Catechist (5 of them) and the village elders.

EDUCATIONAL SCENARIO

The educational scenario in the whole area is very disheartening. The present youngsters are the first generation to have such opportunities. The parents and elders do not really feel the need for education not even trying to understand the need of the children to go to school. They would rather prefer them to work in the fields as they do. Their comments are, “what is the real need to go to school. We never went to school and yet we are happy with the situation, busy with our day-to-day work.” The negative attitudes of the elders towards education, make the youngsters stop their studies very early in life, hardly completing even their primary level. The percentage of literacy is very low as 20%, and that too only at the lower levels. In spite of the effort of the Government to make education compulsory up to the age of 14, yet most children dropped out from school.
Some of the reasons are, the indifference of the parents and the elders, the poverty in the families which compels them to work in order to supplement the income of the parents. This situation is prevalent not only among the boys but even young and growing up girls.

We have a good number of schools in the villages.  19 Pre-Primary Schools (Nursery – KG); 19 Primary Schools (I-V); 9 Upper Primary Schools (VI – VIII) and 1 Secondary School (IX-X, at the centre). The Teachers of the above mentioned Pre-primary and Primary and Upper Primary School and paid through the SSA Scheme; while 7 Pre-Primary and 7 Primary schools and 1 Upper Primary schools are solely paid by the Parish. The Secondary is partly aided (5 teachers). Our future plan in the field of education is to begin class XI this year (June) after the declaration of the Class X Board Examination.

6.0 We have a unit of 12 Salesian Co-operators and a few aspirants, started only in 2011. It is looked after by the Salesian Sisters

Apostolate / Ministries

STATISTICS as per 2016

SCHOOL AT THE CENTRE

Village Schools

1.     Primary – 19

2.     Upper Primary – 9

3.     No. Of Catholics in all schools: Boys 743, Girls 753 = 1496