CHENNAI: Homeless and intellectually challenged, 13-year-old Jeeva* wandered the streets of Krishnagiri. Just like hundreds of other children, he had been kicked out of home because of his disability. But 10 years on, he’s a carpenter and earns enough to meet his needs.
The turning point came in 2011, when State government disability welfare officer S Babu rescued and rehabilitated Jeeva. The child was one of the nearly-150 homeless and disabled people Babu rescued. For Babu too, 2011 was a special year. It was when he shifted from being a physiotherapist to a disability welfare officer, rehabilitating homeless people with disabilities. The 51-year-old decided to work for the disabled after his father, who served as a soldier in World War II, had to have his leg amputated.
“He wanted me to pursue an engineering course in prosthetics, but I did a diploma in prosthetics and orthotics. I started working as a physiotherapist at the Virudhunagar district collectorate in the early 90s,” Babu says. Twenty years later, he was posted as a disability welfare officer, and has since worked in 12 districts. “I received an award from President Ram Nath Kovind in 2019, when Dharmapuri was named the best district for disability rehabilitation,” he says with pride, explaining how they held special drives in the district with the police to identify the homeless and disabled.
Babu recently rescued a tribal child from Tiruvallur after TNIE published a report on how the intellectually-disabled boy was tied to a post as his parents feared he would run away. The rescued children are sent to homes for children with special needs, while adults are connected to NGOs that provide therapy.
“We helped 241 homeless and physically-disabled youngsters get jobs in the watch company Titan,” he says. After each rescue. Babu follows up to see how the rehabilitation is progressing. “We have reunited 24 people with their families after therapy. If they wish to move out of rehabilitation centres after getting jobs, we put them up in disabled-friendly hostels” he adds.
Babu highlights the need for more institutions to admit disabled people. “With trained professionals, a network of safe homes can be created across the State,” he asserts.
‘Goal is to bring out their talents’
Speaking about the aim of rescuing and rehabilitating the physically and mentally disabled, Babu says his goal is to bring out their talents. “They don’t have a platform to showcase their skills as most are homeless and have no support. If we give them the right platform and support, they will shine. While some teenagers have gone on to study at open universities, some have got jobs too. Disabled people we rescued have also won many sports trophies,” he points out
*Name changed