Hitting the road with a boxful of books for the kids

Mahinda Dissanayake has been carrying out his mobile village library project for the past five years. Akila Jayawardena joined him as he made his way to a mountainous, remote area in the Sabaragamuwa province

At least once a month for the past five years, Mahinda Dissanayake, has been taking a regular journey on his bike, with a box of books strapped behind him. He travels to remote areas to provide a lending library for children, a project he continued even amidst the economic crisis.

He started small, but with the help of friends and supporters, donations have been steadily coming in, even from overseas, and Mahinda’s collection has now grown to about 5,000 books.

Having learned of this 35-year-old child rights activist and Rajarata University graduate’s determined mission, we joined him on one of his trips.

Mahinda’s regular job is at the Child Protection Authority in Kegalle. The father of three lives with his family nearly 15 kilometres from Kegalle town.

(We underwent a lot of hardships to gain an education), says Mahinda, who firmly believes that education can make society a better place. By taking books to children who lack access to them, he feels he can open their eyes and minds to a better world.

The Reading Village project was begun in 2018 in a small village 'Watura' near Kegalle with the participation of about 200 adults and children. Along with the books for children, Mahinda tries to give them something more. Sometimes he brings a projector with him and shows the children some short films on environmental projects and even astronomy.

It’s early morning on October 28, and Mahinda is headed to the Wewalthalawa model village in the Sabaragamuwa province. The remote little village on a mountain top is a three-hour bike ride, a distance of some 170 km (up and down) from Kegalle.

We travel along the Halgolla tea estate road that winds its way up to the very top of the mountain. The landscape is beautiful—a carpet of green, misty hillsides dotted with tea pluckers. This is the only motorable road to the village, but it’s a rough ride in most places.

The Wewalthalawa village is home to 90 families with around 300 people. The sad reality is that there is no hospital close by, and even grocery shops are not to be seen. Even though it is a Saturday, we see some older school students in uniform, trekking over the hills to perhaps attend classes elsewhere.

The primary school we are headed to is KG/ Dehi/ Wewathalawa TV, Yathiyanthota Division. One school building is separated into two classrooms. Thirty-five students attend the primary school, studying in the Tamil medium. The school has one teacher, one voluntary teacher, and a principal.

The children have come to school in anticipation of Mahinda’s arrival. It is clear from their beaming faces that they have been eagerly looking forward to his visit. Mahinda shares the Tamil and English books with the children. Their dedicated teachers, who have given up their Saturday free time, have even arranged some food for the students.

Mahinda has brought with him pencils, some stationery, and snacks. In his collection are motivational stories and inspirational biographies. The children circulate the books among themselves, and on his next visit, Mahinda will make sure he has a fresh set of books to leave with them. He has done some projects in Jaffna, and the books he received from children there are used here.

Wewalthalawa is a village he has been visiting regularly and one of his favourite places, Mahinda says. Sadly, some children have had to leave school because of their families’ economic problems.

Mahinda has also taught himself Tamil to be able to communicate with the children. He spends the day with them before returning to Kegalle.

“You are the first journalist to visit and get a first-hand experience of this remote village,” Mahinda says.

His aim is to develop the Reading Village concept, taking it to more rural areas.