Fungsu

Abstract

Set in a tiny village school near Betul, in the Satpura hills of Madhya Pradesh, this story grows out of the jungles of central India, from a region predominantly inhabited by the Gond Adivasi tribe. It narrates the rescue of a palm tree from flood waters by a group of students and offers a window into the life of plants in rural India and their relationships with its inhabitants. The anecdote, related by a school teacher, straddles the space between writing about ecology, language and teaching, with few pretensions to theories of education or conservation, but with a lightness of touch and a subtle sense of humour that allows one to enjoy it like a fable, or just a tall tale. The piece was first published in Hindi in Sandarbh Magazine (http://www.sandarbh.eklavya.in/), a bi-monthly periodical for teachers; accompanying illustrations are by the translator, Nina Bhatt.