New Delhi, Mar 26 (PTI) Students’ Welfare Mission, an NGO from Assam’s Pathsala which has been working for special and autistic children, has been conferred with the Children’s Champion Award 2023 here. Instituted by the Delhi Commission for Protection of Child Rights last year to recognise individuals and institutions that have championed the cause of children across education, justice, health, nutrition, sports and artistic expression categories, the Mission, which is popularly known as Tapoban, has been awarded in the health and nutrition category, an official release said.
The awards were handed out by Justice P S Narasimha of the Supreme Court, Chief Justice of the Odisha High Court S Muralidhar and Delhi Education Minister Atishi Marlena at a function held here on Saturday. Founder president of the Mission, Kumud Kalita, received the award that carries Rs 75,000, a certificate and a plaque. A jury comprising eminent and accomplished individuals decided to confer the Children’s Champion Award on the NGO in health and nutrition category for their “consistent efforts to provide quality care to the children with special needs”, the release said.
The NGO is the only organisation from the Northeast to be selected for the award. The DCPCR received altogether 1,100 nominations from organisations and individuals across the country. Set up in 2005, Tapoban has been working for the specially-abled children providing speech therapy, physiotherapy and occupational therapy, music and other skills besides awareness.
“The children are brought to Tapoban where they are taught daily living skills, ways of communication, music apart from academics. They interact with each other in a child-friendly environment,” said Kalita.
Tapoban has provided a home and education to these children with special needs.
Presently there are 18 specially-abled and orphaned children housed in Tapoban and they are looked after by 17 workers.
Since its inception, over 700 children have been helped by the NGO so far, the release said. PTI ACB DV DV
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