A group of parents with children with autism have taken an initiative to start a residential facility for individuals with autism and their families.
There is a demand for such a facility from parents because they want to ensure a secure life for the children in their absence, said those behind the set-up that is being constructed at Jamdoba village, about 20km from Bolpur and around 150km from the city.
Ananda Ashrama, as it is called, will have two sections — one with a residential facility for above six years of age with school, medical facility and agricultural land and the other will have provision for cottages for children to stay with their parents.
The entire project is coming up on a 10-acre plot.
Parents who are IT professionals, doctors, engineers, teachers have come forward to support this project and even contributed from their personal fund.
The question for most parents with children with autism or disabilities is “what happens after us,” said Arunasis Adhikari, a parent and one of the persons behind the project. “The concern for most parents is who will look after their children after their death. We want the responsibility to be taken by fellow parents who have children with autism because they will understand their issues and show empathy,” said Adhikari, also the secretary of a trust that runs a school for children with special needs in the city.
The facility will be inaugurated in January 2023 but already 10 of the cottages have been booked.
“There are young parents who have already booked the cottages. Since it is not far off from the city, travelling during the weekend for working parents would be easy,” said Sudeshna Chowdhury, a parent and one of the persons behind the project and the principal of the school as well.
There are also retired parents who have booked to live with their adult children.
“It is a paid facility but we do not want it to become a business venture. For that we need young parents to whom we can pass the baton,” said Adhikari.
The residential facility for children and individuals with autism will have a capacity of 50.
The cottages for children with parents will have a total capacity of 35 but not all would be sold off at one time, said Adhikari.
“We will sell in phases so that there are younger parents who will be able to run the facility in the long run,” he said.
Chowdhury said it was a paid facility because parents wanted a certain kind of infrastructure and care for their children. “But we will have one section which would be on subsidy.”
The concern for most parents is the “social acceptability” that is still lacking, they said.
“Though there is so much talk about inclusion but in reality that hardly happens. We cannot keep waiting because by then we will be too old,” said a parent.
The trust hopes that though they can accommodate only 50 individuals and another 35 families this would serve as a model for future such endeavours.