The Journey Vol. 02, 2022

A Land of Promise

In the beautiful hillside of Banakal, India, many hurdles would need to be overcome to complete the desired school. From chasing cattle to diverting water sources, it took careful stewardship of land over many years for Nazareth School to find its place in Banakal, and become recognized as a leading educational institution in Mudigere.

In the 1990s, the Sisters of Charity of Nazareth sought to expand their mission beyond Bihar and Jharkhand. Invitations to open missions in the south of India were already coming, and some missions were already open. As the Sisters looked at a possible mission in the Diocese of Chikmagalur in the year 1996, Babil A. Saldanha, a philanthropist from Banakal, offered to donate two acres of property with a wish that the Sisters would venture into the ministry of education to address the concerns of the employees of the coffee estates in Banakal.

Nestled atop the Charmadi hills in the scenic Western Ghats, Banakal is surrounded by coffee estates and paddy fields and is known for its pleasant weather throughout the year. It is one of the agriculture dominant villages in the Chikmagalur district. Marietta Saldanha, SCN, and Hilda Lobo, SCN, were the first to be missioned.

Recalling her pioneering days, Sister Hilda says, “The initial period of my ministry was all about chasing the cattle from the property full of coffee plants. Since there was no fence to the property, the cattle from the neighborhood found the place a haven for them.” It took just six months for the two-acre property of the coffee plantation to become a barren land, and this shattered the heart of the Sisters.

The land had no water to support any ministry on it. Sisters also ran into difficulty as the land was registered as agricultural land and using it for any other purpose was illegal as per the government. WhileBanakal and its neighboring towns do not run short of annual rains, the sloppy terrain meant that the water did not replenish the groundwater source. As hurdles piled up, the Sisters had lost hope of continuing ministry in Banakal. Fortunately for them, in 1998, through the help of a water diviner, they found a good running stream under the land, and the first well was dug on the land. It took eight years to cross all the legal hurdles to ensure that the foundation for the education ministry was sound on the property. Today it hosts the sprawling Nazareth School.

After 10 years of labor, the Sisters finally moved from a rented home to a partially converted convent in the school. By 2007, Sisters had acquired an additional five acres of property, predominantly through the generosity of a family. After 13 years of careful stewardship, the school building was completed, and Nazareth School found a place on the map of Banakal, recognized as a leading educational institution of Mudigere Taluk. Four years later, in 2012, a convent was constructed so that the classrooms used as a convent until then could be utilized for the students.

The mostly undeveloped part of the property stirred the Sisters to expand their mission of caring for the earth. Frequent entry of cattle left the place devoid of any plantation. Under the initiative of Elizabeth Jaya Rani, SCN, a compound wall was constructed, but part of this wall was destroyed by devastating rains in 2019. With the first hurdle crossed, the objective now was to retain the rain waters on the campus. A pond was dug on the campus to which rainwater from the entire property was collected. The available water was just enough for the needs of the school. The local administration then helped with funds to dig a second well on the campus. Today, a third well is being constructed in the middle of the pond to ensure that water does not dry up in the three to four months of water shortage.

All the Sisters who have been missioned as administrators have taken enormous steps to build a green cover on the campus that housed the school building. As Banakal mission begins to celebrate its Silver Jubilee this year, a trek on the property laid barren in 1996 will reveal over 10,000 trees spread over four-and-a-half acres of land. One cannot miss the tall oaks, mahoganies, acacia, teak, pines, fig, almond, and fruits ranging from jackfruit, mango, mud apple, blackberry, lemon, grapefruit, banana, pomelo, hog plum, papaya, avocado, mangosteen, rambutan, kokum, breadfruit, litchi, eggplant, guava, and pineapple. There are also coconut trees, coffee plants, areca nut trees, champak, pepper, and cardamom to support the biodiversity of the land. The beautiful gardens around the school and the convent are feasts to the eyes. The green cover is home to varieties of birds and butterflies. One can see rabbits hopping on their webbed feet in the quiet of the night.

Mohan, a full-time gardener, is deeply committed to the development of the land as he tends the property. He carefully plans the layout of the plots and plants trees appropriately, tends the plants, and prepares bio-manure with cow dung, humus, and vegetable wastes. Apart from this, he also cultivates seasonal vegetables and nurtures small-scale poultry with 13 hens, two cocks, and eight chicks.

Sister Hilda, who is the principal of the school, currently walks around the campus every day and talks to the plants and trees. She believes that her touch and sound impact the health of the plant and subsequently its produce. Her younger brother, Ignatius Lobo, is her inspiration, she says. He regularly supplies new saplings and guides her as well. The Sisters in Banakal find God in the nature around them. “You care for the earth and the earth, in turn, cares for you,” they say.

The land once barren and gave no hope for ministry is now a thick green cover. Like the western ghats, Nazareth School aims to conserve the biodiversity of the earth on its campus. The school has seen 10 batches of graduating students, many of whom are well placed in society. Sabreesh, a student of the first batch of Nazareth School, is now a medical doctor at St. John’s Medical College Hospital, Bangalore, where Jessie Saldanha, SCN, and Sheeli Chinnarani, SCN, are among the staff. In harmony with the care for the earth, the education ministry makes the mission in Banakal whole and fulfilling for the Sisters of Charity of Nazareth.