The Hindu : NATIONAL / KARNATAKA : Books take them beyond the confinesJune 4, 2012 Sanjeevini Singh Bangalore : “I like reading. It makes me feel good… like I can do something,” says Shashikala, a resident of the Beggars' Rehabilitation Centre on Magadi Road.
What has made a difference to her self-esteem is the library on the campus, which was introduced a couple of years ago. Classroom too It is not only stacked with books and newspapers, but also doubles as a classroom, providing rudimentary education to the residents. Honnesh Kumar, who is in charge of the library, says the introduction of this academic facility was meant to provide education to the beggars as part of their rehabilitation programme. Over the years, Mr. Kumar claims to have seen considerable improvement in the residents, especially among the mentally challenged. While many residents may resent the “captive” environment of the home — although food and other facilities have seen a dramatic improvement since the deaths of beggars in August, 2010 — they regard the library as some sort of connection to the outside world. For the educated Apart from those who are just learning to read and write, one also comes across people in the library who have got into the home even though they are fairly well educated. Jayaprakash, who said he holds a degree in commerce, was busy reading a newspaper. He said he had been at the rehabilitation centre for two years and was waiting for his father to come take him home. K. Shailaja says she passed SSLC and worked at a garment factory as a supervisor. She wanted to join an ashram but ended up at the centre, she said. “I never meant to come here.” Original -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Mental Health Advocacy (News 'N Views) India" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected] To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected] For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/MhaNewsViewsIndia?hl=en ------------- Affiliated Groups : MENTAL HEALTH ADVOCACY INDIA [email protected] Discussions on mental health law / policy / plan monitoring / human rights etc [email protected] India-specific news and views related to mental health [email protected] Information and support to carers of people with mental health issues [email protected] Mutual support and sharing of experiential knowledge, skills and social learning amongst peers
