While many college students will be enjoying a relaxing summer, one Notre Dame High School sixth-former will be volunteering in rural India.

Nyasha Ngwendere, 17, will be flying to the city of Madurai in southern India to take part in a medical volunteering programme.

As well as experiencing the culture of India, she will be placed in the care of a variety of doctors of different types. Nyasha, who lives in the Riverside area of Norwich, said: 'We will be allowed a lot more access, allowed to see much more of the real medicine and participate than we are allowed over here when on a medical placement. We will also have the opportunity to visit the leprosy clinic, where we will see how this disease gets treated and how surgery and physiotherapy are carried out.

'As a contrast, we will also have the chance to experience 5,000-year-old traditional Ayurvedic medical treatments at the Sree Ramakrishna Naturopathy and Ayurvedic Resort. There will also be the opportunity to visit a rehabilitation centre for mental illness.'

Nyasha will be in India between Sunday, July 29 and Saturday, August 11 as part of a trip organised by Projects Abroad for 16 to 19-year-olds. She was given backing in her application for the placement by one of her teachers at Notre Dame, Antony Little. Antony said: 'I have had the pleasure of teaching Nyasha for a number of years and have always found her to be the kind of enthusiastic and committed person that should give our young people a good name in the UK.

'The incredible passion she has for life, and learning, is infectious and therefore I am unsurprised that she is making the huge commitment to support herself during a two-week medical volunteering trip to India.'

Firm details of where Nyasha will stay and her definite itinerary will not be confirmed until closer to the time, but she will get some time to enjoy herself as well, visiting temples and going on elephant rides.

She added: 'I'm a bit nervous but I'm looking forward to it because it is a new place and new people.'

Nyasha is holding a raffle via email, to raise money that she can donate to the leprosy centre that she will visit in India. Several prizes have been donated by local businesses, with tickets costing �1. Email her on nash-nash@live.co.uk if you would like to enter the raffle.

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