Support to 150 Mentally Retarded Orphan Children and for Infrastructural needs at the Sahaya Matha High School to Promote Basic Education among 950 Children, Tamilnadu, India

Project location: India, Tamilnadu
Project start date: December 2011 - Project end date: December 2012
Project number: 2011-52
Beneficiary: Sahaya Matha Hospital

Sahaya Matha Hospital combined with a convent is one of the several convents of the congregation of the sisters of St. Immaculate Mary established to cater to the pastoral religious, educational, welfare health care and socio economic needs of the children, women and others in the order of priority. One primary health center under the name "Little Flower PHC" and one hospital under the name "Sahaya Matha Hospital" are being operated to cater to the health needs. One high school named "Sahaya Matha high school" is being run to promote basic education. Among the 960 children on roll in the school, 150 children are orphans, who are being cared at the home providing all their needs.
The other 810 children are day scholars and they are being provided only education. The sisters are well experienced in running the PHC, hospital, home and the school for the past several years. The untiring and selfless efforts of the sisters have facilitated to improve the health and educational standards of the children, women and other poor and less privileged sections of the population.

The 150 children who are being cared for at the home are semi or full urbans and abandoned by their relatives and communities. The surviving parents of semi urbans and the relatives of the full orphans were not ready - and financially incapacitated too - to meet the educational and the personal needs of the children. Therefore they become abandoned and deprived of their education. The Sisters looking at their deplorable condition admitted them into the home and providing all their legitimate needs of their age, free of cost. The school does not adequate infrastructural facilities like benches, desks, cupboards, computers, etc., to provide better quality education in line with those of the schools established in towns and cities. Since the resources of the convent are limited and local government do not give any grant being the school belonging to minority institution for infrastructural facilities, the Sisters are necessitated to search for external sources for support. The Sisters spare no efforts in providing them the best since they too are the children of the same God and have every right to enjoy all the facilities.

150 urban children will be provided uniform dresses, note books, stationery and their school and tuition fees will be paid in the beginning of the school year in June. Besides the above, their personal needs like soap, oil, toothpaste, toothbrush, etc., will be provided during the year whenever they are in need. Thus the urban children will be facilitated to continue their education and to live happily at home.
Quotations from different suppliers will be sought for the supply of benches and desks, cupboards, Tv with DVD player, computers and accessories. The above materials will be purchased from the lowest quoted supplier for the school and they will be placed there. Thus the children will be facilitated to have the conclusive learning environment at school and they will become equipped with computer knowledge, which has become a necessity in these past growing years.

This project received a grant from the Nando Peretti Foundation. The urban children will have continued education without any break. The completion of the basic education will enable them to go for higher education. Thereby they will become independent in due course.
Provision of personal needs will make them psychologically happy and that happiness and a safe environment will enable them to study better.
The classrooms in the school will be equipped with the required infrastructural facilities like benches and desks. Therefore children will live in a comfortable environment.
Provision of TV and DVD player will facilitate them to spend their leisure time usefully and meaningfully. They can learn many things for watching the news and others stories.
The children will become equipped with the knowledge of computer applications and they will be able to compete with others and to get a gainful employment and income in the future. Their income will make them independent and self-dependent for their need later.