Support children and persons with Disabilities

SIVA Trust continued to work for persons with disabilities in one block each in Tirunelveli and Tenkasi districts of Tamil Nadu. The exclusive staff for the project could help 3 PwDs in getting Unique Disability ID card and an artificial limb to a person of Devarkulam village. From July onwards, the Trust started working for PwDs in Karamadai block of Coimbatore district also in the same State. In view of the COVID-19 pandemic, ration kit worth INR 1000 were distributed to 200 PwDs in Coimbatore district and 30 PwDs in Tirunelveli district. Besides, the PwDs in Coimbatore district were helped in registering their own society for taking care of themselves.

Mobilising financial help from individual donors, the Trust could manage to distribute 6 wheel chairs, each worth around USD 100, to most deserving, poor, intellectually and physically disabled chidren/youth, 2 in Tenkasi district and 4 in Coimbatore district during this period, greatly relieving the burden of their mothers in carrying them for their day-today chores. The one adult member who got articifical limb with our help is able to drive even a two-wheeler.

Since the Trust is engaged in motivating all people to go for vaccination to prevent corona virus, special attention was given to the PwDs under our care, their fears over vaccination were allayed and they were motivated to safeguard themselves from corona, by taking corona test as well as vaccination without fail. The rural health authorities were requested to organise special camps or door-to-door effort to vaccinate the PwDs. We were able to get vaccination for around 100 PwDs in all the three districts during this quarter and the process will continue for another quarter.

During the period under review, due to the general elections in the working are followed by lock down to stop spread of COVID-19 pandemic, personal meetings of the staff with the persons with disabilities (PwDs) taken care of by SIVA Trust was very limited. However, the staff continued to contact them over telephone, to know abour their welfare and extend them guidance and possible assistance. The Government offices providing benefits to the PwDs were also mostly closed or the concerned officials were busy with general election work and later combating the corona virus.

We could get disability pension assistance to one girl of Koovachipatti and bank account was started to receive pension for one boy of Devarkulam in the month of March. As a new initiative, a Joint Livelihood Group entirely consisting of 10 PwDs was started in April in Devarkulam village and they will be helped in getting financial assistance to start some home based income generation activity. Financial literacy awareness campaign was also conducted for the educated PwDs. When the lock down conditions in May completely crippled the mobility of the PwDs seeking some livelihood opportunities, appeal was made to friends and ration kits sufficient for one month were supplied to 31 PwDs in Devarkulam and 12 in Keelaneelithanallur villages. The Social Welfare Department officials were further contacted over phone and requested to provide special ration items to all the PwDs under our care, as per the Government's scheme.

Since the Trust is engaged in motivating all people to go for vaccination to prevent corona virus, special attention was given to the PwDs under our care and they were also motivated to safeguard themselves from corona, by taking corona test as well as vaccination without fail. The rural health authorities were requested to organise special camps to vaccinate the PwDs.

As the formal admission to schools also started in mid-June, counselling was given to the parents of children with disabilities to get their wards admitted once the lock down is lifted.