Swastha has rehabilitated many such children
There are 101 such children in Swastha
It has been training special children in various vocations since 2004
Madikeri:
Swastha, a centre for rehabilitation of special children on Sunticoppa-Madapur road in Kodagu, is a “home sweet home” for 101 such children.
Swastha has been taking care of such children and training them in various vocations since 2004.
Ganga Changappa, project head of Swastha, told The Hindu that 19 children, who had been trained in bookbinding, folder-making, screen printing, manufacturing table mats, bags, mushroom cultivation and offset printing, had been shifted to Polibetta, where they were working now.
In Swastha, special children undergo training under the watchful eyes of specialists. As many as 18 children have found placements in Kodagu and elsewhere. Some have been self-employed. Tulasi, who joined Swastha in 1986 and trained there till 2003, is now employed in a garment factory in Bangalore. Manohar, who was admitted in Swastha with cerebral palsy, works as a helper at the KSRTC depot in Kushalnagar. Guruappa, who is partially visually challenged, works in the Bengaluru International Airport.
Three are working as instructors at Swastha itself. Mohini, who is physically challenged, is working as a tailoring instructor, according to Aarti, counsellor and psychologist at Swastha. Two mentally challenged girls got married some time ago. Besides, seven children had joined regular schools under inclusive education stream, she said.
Eighteen-year-old Gaurav from Somwarpet made news recently for a different reason. He is less than two feet in height. But he is unperturbed by this and is preparing for the SSLC examination.
Special skills are needed to handle such children, and the faculty at Swastha has them in abundance. The faculty deals with children with cerebral palsy, autism, mental retardation, and epilepsy.
There are six special educators, a rehabilitation teacher and a speech therapist, apart from the counsellor.
Ms. Aarti said Swastha had also brought the parents of the children under one roof. The parents had formed a self-help group. They would meet on the fifth of every month. The group was planning to buy sweaters for the special children this year.
The children get free vocational education, accommodation, uniforms, and medical care. There is free transport for day scholars. Swastha is funded by the JRD Tata Trust and Coorg Foundation, an initiative of Tata Coffee Limited, Polibetta.
Ms. Ganga Changappa said Swastha incurred an expenditure of Rs. 30 lakh every year. Two hundred children had applied for admission in Swastha, she added.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> National> Karnataka / by Jeevan Changappa / August 17th, 2008
