Support children and persons with Disabilities

The quarter under review was a challenging period because of the spread of COVID-19 virus and the continued lockdown condition crippling the mobility of our staff to the field areas to help the persons with disability PwD). However, with our due guidance, the staff started contacting the persons with disability in various villages through telephone and have been giving them suitable guidance to remain safe within their home. When the Government agencies announced some relief measures like free ration, cash assistance for their survival, all were informed about the benefits and guided to get those benefits. The disabled rehabilitation officials were also kept in constant contact to ensure that relief measures reached all the PwDs in our area. Help from some political parties and other philonthrapists were also arranged, wherever possible, for the PwDs. They were also helped in getting interest free loan of Rs.5000 each from the New Life Scheme of Tamil Nadu State Government.

When the condition slightly improved and the Government machinery started their normal work, we helped one Subbiah Pandian of Vanniconendal in getting artificial limb and one Prema of Devarkulam a tricycle for her mobility. Two others who were earlier helped to apply for monthly pension started getting the same during this period. One Seenothurai could get Disability ID card with our help. Besides, the cases of 23 applications for pension, 48 cases of assistive devices are being followed up.

Because of the restrictions on movement, two PwDs who are running petty shops with our help in their villages could not move out to procure things frim nearby towns. We approached the police officials and got them permission to go out for procuring more things. We also assisted them financially for procuring things. Atailor with locomotor disability was helped in earning extra money by stitching masks distributed by the Trust to the people. 

One single mother of Uganthanpatti, with a 11 year old mentally retarded boy and a 9 year old visually challenged girl sought the help of the Trust. The girl was admitted in the Blind School at Palayamkottai and the boy in the MR hostel at Adayakarungulam. The lady was also assured to help with financial assistance to acquire goats for grazing as a means of survival.

The staff helped the health officials in conducting door to door survey of people affected by corona virus. The PwDs were counselled through phone whenever they were depressed mentally because of the corona threat.

With more generous assistance from the donors we can be of help to more number of persons with disability in our area, especially in the post-Covid situation, when most of the marginalised sections including the PwDs lost their main sources of income due to movement control and threat of getting affected by corona.