Children being provided care and protection in children’s homes must leave at 18 years of age as per the Juvenile Justice Act. Even children who live with their biological families also find it very difficult to sustain themselves at 18 years of age. Educational systems, globally, acknowledge that children need about 12 years of education till the senior school level and with one or two years of pre-primary education a total of 14 years of education. Children from Children&rsqu...

Asha Bhavan (Men) is an institute for men who have been discharged from the mental hospital after treatment and have not been accepted by their families and friends. The social stigma attached to mental illness is such that even after their successful treatment, the patients find no support from the society. We view them with scepticism and unpredictability to an extent that we are even afraid of them but the truth is, these patients are just like us and mental h...

Asha Bhavan for Women is an institution under the Social Welfare Department of Govt. of Kerala. It is meant for the care and protection of women who have been cured of their mental disorders. But even after treatment, these cured patients have none to take care of them. In Asha Bhavan, these women are provided with proper medication and simultaneously various vocational rehabilitation activities are also conducted. The institute provides a support system to these women by making them...

Children’s Home for Boys is a State Government of Kerala institution which serves the purpose of rehabilitating of underprivileged and orphaned boys in the age group of 5 to 18 years. The institute provides the young boys with the support for personal development and emotional healing so that they can realize their own potential. Living full time at the institute, the boys do their schooling and acquire the skills they need to build a successful future. ...

The Children’s Home for Girls supports the growth and success and serves the purpose of  facilitating underprivileged girls in the age group of 5 to 18 years. It is a child correctional institution that aims at the ultimate welfare of a girl child who is in need of care and protection under the Juvenile Justice (care and protection of children) Act. The Institute helps each child in developing their future and guides their progress through constant nurturing and care. The Girls...

A performance audit by the Comptroller and Auditor General of India has concluded that in Kerala 5.86 percent of the population suffers from mental illness which roughly amounts to around 2 million people. The mentally ill who have nowhere to go find little sympathy from those around them and often land themselves in emergency rooms, city jails and city streets. The lucky ones are accepted by their families. Government Mental Health Centre takes care of these patients by providing th...

Govt. Hospital of Dermatology was started by German Missionaries with a view to provide treatment and rehabilitation to the ostracised leprosy patients. In the year 1978, the institution was taken over by Govt. of Kerala. Currently, there are around 120 inmates in the institution. The main objective of the institution is to treat the leprosy patients and to cure their disease. Even after curing their disease, the problem faced by these inmates is the non-willingness of their families to accep...

Hospitals are places we visit when we fall sick. We associate them with illness more than wellness. But we would like to change that. Let us envision hospitals as community hubs – places that facilitate interactions between medical professionals and the community that promotes health and wellness. Established in 1957, Government Medical College in Calicut city is a premier medical institution. Along with its allied institutions, it serves about forty percent population of Kerala. No...

Home for Mentally Disabled Children caters to the needs of mentally challenged children. Mentally challenged children have impaired adaptive ability and are slow in learning and processing their thoughts. They may also have a significantly low IQ. People often believe that mentally challenged children lack the capacity to learn. HMDC provides these children with proper medication, elementary education and vocational training based on their IQ. More than anything these children n...

Being differently abled is considered as a social stigma. In extreme cases such people are ostracised by the society and treated indifferently. Home for Physically Handicapped was set up to offer protection and rehabilitation to the differently abled people. Forty per cent of inmates in HPH are trained in vocational courses like Book Binding and Leather Works in Vocational Training Centre, an insitution situated adjacent to HPH.  The first and foremost area that requires...

Institute of Palliative Medicine is located in the Medical College campus, Kozhikode. The ambience of the insitute is set as to give maximum comfort and relaxation to the patients with good ventilation and moving space. The facilities include Inpatient Facility(30 bedded inpatient facility to take care of those who need admission. Patients are offered admission for relief of symptoms, respite for the family and for terminal care), Dining(A neat and spacious canteen which supplies food for pat...

Mahila Mandiram envisages an empowered woman as an integral part of a developing society. Broadly, the aim of Mahila Mandiram is to work for the betterment of a woman in every area of their life. Mahila Mandiram functions as a shelter home for women and for their temporary reception. It is concerned with care, education, empowerment and rehabilitation of needy woman. The institute tries to empower and educate women, both intellectually and emotionally. Underprivileged women and girls...

Observation Home for Boys is a short-stay home for juveniles in conflict with law. They are children who face inquiry by the Juvenile Justice Board under the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act and Amendment Act 2000 and 2006. Boys under 18 years of age in conflict with law are admitted to these homes by police. The home provides non-formal education and vocational trainings to juveniles with regular counselling to overcome their trauma. Also, it provides proper care, prote...

Observation Home for Girls is meant for the temporary reception of any juvenile delinquent during the pendency of any inquiry against her. Only girls under 18 years of age in conflict with law brought under the purview of the Indian Penal Code and other legislations are produced before the Juvenile Justice Board. Children in conflict with law are admitted to these homes by police. The apprehended children are normally detained for a period of 4 months for observation. This home provides ...

In a perfect world, everyone would keep their elderly parents at home with them. In a perfect world, our old who help build the nation will be cared for when they need it the most. But this is not a perfect world and the Old Age Home situated in Vellimadukunnu is trying to bring back some of the dignity of aging. The aim of the institute is to take care of the elderly who are in the later stages of their life and have no one to look after them. Almost ninety percent of the inma...

Centuries have come and centuries have gone, but the plight of women has not changed. In Malayali culture, a woman occupies a vital position and venerable place, but at the same time their glorification is rather mythical.  Violence against women both inside and outside their homes has been a crucial issue in Kerala.  Shot stay home provides temporary shelter (for a period of 4 months, extended up to 2 months) and rehabilitation of women who have no social support sys...

Around 2.7 per cent of the population of Kerala experience some form of disability. The disabilities include chronic fits, strange behaviour, difficulty in moving around, seeing, hearing, learning and feeling. At the policy level, progressive legislations, schemes and provisions exist for them but at the ground level, the differently abled continue to be neglected and marginalised, with the onus of care on the family rather than the community. The primary goal of VTC is to assi...