Home of Joy: Pandian Interacts With Shraddha Sanjivani Inmates on the Occasion Of 14th Foundation Day

Berhampur: Secretary to CM (5T) VK Pandian has interacted with the inmates of Shraddha Sanjivani Child Care Home (SSCCH), Gopalpur, on the occasion of its 14th Foundation Day.

SSCCH, which was set up on December 21, 2007, by the Ganjam District administration when Pandian was the Collector of the district, gives HIV infected orphans and vulnerable children a new lease of life.

Pandian, who is always having a soft corner towards the children of Shraddha Sanjivani, encouraged the inmates to share their life experiences at the child care home.

During the interaction, the 5T Secretary recollected his personal experience with the inmates of SSCCH. He also motivated the children to beat challenges in their life and assured to provide all necessary support.

As the children of SSCCH are of special category and need special attention, the 5T Secretary has urged the district administration to focus on four major areas – education, health, nutrition and livelihood – for the development of children.

As per reports, with 16,512 HIV infected population including 800 children, Ganjam is one of the high prevalence districts in India. Over 32 percent of the total HIV caseloads of Odisha are in Ganjam.

At the height of HIV scare in Ganjam, Shraddha Sanjivani Child Care Home was established in 2007 to provide an alternative family living to HIV infected orphans and vulnerable children with proper healthcare. It also enables children to get proper education and develop technical skills.

Besides Ganjam, the inmates of Shraddha Sanjivani are also from different districts, such as Kendrapada, Jagatsinghpur, Rayagada, Gajapati, Angul, Kalahandi Puri and Sundargarh. The cumulative enrolment of children at SSCCH since 2007 is 98, including 45 girls. At present, there are 53 inmates in the Child Care Home.

All the children are in mainstreaming education and attending schools and colleges without any discrimination. As many as 19 inmates of Shraddha Sanjivani have passed HSC between 2015 and 2020, and four have completed Intermediate. Fifteen inmates have got admission in GOVT ITI Berhampur and four of them have completed their diploma.

The skill building unit established in the premises provides training on sanitary napkin making, screen printing, rubber stamp making and tailoring to the inmates of Sradha Sanjeevani. There are also plans to expand the units and include other HIV infected OVCs in the district, says Ganjam Collector Vijay Amruta Kulange.

SSCCH is now self-sufficient in producing sanitary pads for use of its inmates, he adds,, says Lokanath Mishra, one of the founding members of child care home.

The new campus of Shraddha Sanjivani was inaugurated in 2016 by Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik. The new campus has 5 residential blocks with 60 attached toilet rooms, spacious kitchen and dining hall, assembly hall for 100 people, yoga mandap, sick room and a Skill building unit. The new campus can comfortably accommodate 120 children with HIV.