Friday 5th August is the one year anniversary of the floods and mudflows that started just before midnight in 2010. Shops and restaurants in Leh and the surrounding areas are closed today in respect for those who died or lost their homes and loved ones.

Many schools have stayed open and to mark the occasion DWLS held a special assembly today. Prayers were held and Class 7B gave a presentation on the environment and geology of Ladakh.

Mr Karma Thargyil, Head of the Infant Section, then gave a short speech about the disaster and those whose lives it had affected.  Mr Thargyil lost his own house to the mud. The whole school observed two minutes of silence. Further prayers were said to conclude this special assembly.

Despite the serious effect this event had on the school and the Leh and Choglamsar areas, life appears to be back to normal with houses rebuilt and nearly all of the debris cleared away, however agricultural land covered with mud will take time to become fertile soil again. The school campus needs much landscaping work to be done and physical defences are being built to protect against possible future inundations.

Materials, equipment and furnishings that were lost at the school have mostly been replaced  but the school still urgently needs funds to replace the Montessori equipment (2 x classroom sets at 234,000 INR(Rps)/ US$5,200/ €3,700/ £3,300) and to re-stock the library with books to meet the school needs and CBSE requirements (450,000 INR(Rps)/ US$10,000/ €7,200/ £6,400) for a further 1500 books). Contact us for a list of examples of the novels required This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.