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CHAPTER XXII.
known, specialists in this class of material (who already exist) would
doubtless make every effort to meet it, and in time circulating libraries
of suitable slides and films could be built up.

Welfare Centres.

Many planters and their wives devote considerable time and
energy to the welfare of the resident women and children, but the lack
of women doctors, health visitors and trained midwives has made it
difficult to organise forms of welfare work particularly applicable to these
sections of the plantation communities. The experiment of employing
2» trained health visitor has been made successfully in one of the Assam
gardens, and we consider that great soope exists for a wide extension
of work of this kind. The work of a health visitor, if it is to give the
best results, should always be supervised by the garden medical officer
and, where a group medical organisation exists, the woman doctor
with two or three health visitors should be able to organise welfare
centres on each garden of the group. Each centre should be open at
least one day a week and regular visits by the woman doctor give
the health visitor opportunities of bringing to her early notice cases
requiring medical attention. The welfare centres should be situated
near the house lines, and in many cases accommodation could probably
be found in a vacant room in the lines themselves. - The necessary fur-
niture and equipment need be neither elaborate nor expensive and, with
small additions to the latter, the same building could if necessary be used
as a creche. Experience goes to prove that the women workers quickly
learn to appreciate the advantages to themselves and their children of
attendance at such a centre. We believe that extension of this form
of welfare work would prove of value to all concerned.
Orphans.

Normally in the case of young children who become orphaned
and have no relations settled on the estate, arrangements are made by
the manager for their adoption by other estate workers, the cost of their
maintenance falling on the plantation. It is seldom that any steps are
taken to communicate with the villages of their origin with a view to
ascertaining whether near relations exist who might be desirous of claim-
ing them. Werecommend that in all such cases some suitable authority,
such as the district magistrate, should invariably be approached to get
into touch with any existing relations. Where a desire for the return
of the child is expressed, arrangements should be made for repatriation.
Employment of Children.

We now come to the age at which it should be permissible for a
child to be employed as a worker on a plantation. It is significant
that the Central Government have seen fit to protect Indian children who
emigrate to the plantations of Ceylon and Malaya by securing that the
starting age for employment shall be 10 years. The practice throughout
Indian plantations varies considerably. At least one association admitted