View source for Ghatula (Madhya Pradesh, India)

Ghatula, a village 40 miles (65 km) southeast of [[Dhamtari (Chhattisgarh State, India)|Dhamtari]], [[Madhya Pradesh State (India)|Madhya Pradesh]] (now Chhattisgarh), [[India|India]], at the edge of a rich agricultural valley, was a Mennonite ([[Mennonite Church (MC)|Mennonite Church]]) mission station established in 1916 under the direct management of [[Lapp, George Jay (1879-1951)|George J.]] and [[Lapp, Esther Ebersole (1880-1917)|Esther E. Lapp]]. The Bible training school for Christian workers was moved from Rudri to Ghatula the same year. Ultimately on the station ground of seven acres living quarters were built for missionaries, employees, Christian workers, and Bible school students, as well as a Bible school, a medical dispensary, and nurses' quarters; on an adjacent plot was built a primary school for village children with Christian teachers. The Ghatula field covered more than 2,000 square miles. There were opportunities for Indian Christians to obtain employment and purchase land in Ghatula and surrounding villages, with the result that a substantial Christian community with a well-organized church was established, which in 1955 had 81 members.

In 1929 the Bible school was merged into the Bible department of the [[Dhamtari Christian Academy (Dhamtari, Chhattisgarh State, India)|Christian Academy at Dhamtari]], from which time Ghatula was more particularly an evangelistic and primary educational center. In 1929-1939 a girls' industrial school was operated, giving instruction in handwork, homemaking, field work, and elementary subjects. The industrial school was under the management of Minnie Kanagy and Gladys Weaver.
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