Shelter's aim is to develop the child in a holistic manner - physically, emotionally, psychologically, socially, morally and financially thus enabling them to settle comfortably in society. Since 1987 Shelter Don Bosco has been consistently reaching out to the unreached children on the street and has gradually developed a holistic rehabilitation programme. This programme has various different facets. They are:
1. STREET CONTACT :In an over populated city like Mumbai where millions of people flock to seek their fortunes, the child on the street is often ignored and rejected. These Rootless and Roofless children live usually on the streets, railway platforms, market places and other isolated areas. Few bother about their needs, their problems or care about them; even in this crowded city they are lonely. One of the major interventions of Shelter Don Bosco is street contact wherein the children are met by the outreach staff at the places they live or frequent. A street contact person spends time with these children responding to their immediate needs, often without any formal activity. When necessary, basic health services and counseling is also provided.
Aims & objectives: To reach out to the unreached children on the street, especially the small, sick and new children.
Target Group: Roofless and rootless children
Services rendered: Street Education, Health Care, Counseling, Home Placement, etc.
Locations for interaction: Crawford Market, Byculla, Kaka Hotel, Wadala, Kurla, Gateway of India, King’s Circle, Mankhurd, Borivli, Malad, Andheri, Vile Parle, Bandra, Mahim, Bombay Central, Grant Road, Charni Road, Marine Lines, Churchgate, CST, Dadar, Masjid.
2. DROP -IN- CENTRE: In times of need, children on the street can visit the Drop-in-centre situated just outside the Western Railway station at Dadar, to avail of services to meet their immediate needs. Various facilities like counseling, basic health care, savings, non-formal education, recreation, a missing children’s bureau, water and locker facilities are provided here.
Aim and objectives: To provide immediate and short- term assistance to the children.
Target group: Roofless rootless children and children of flower vendors.
Age group: 5-15 years.
3. 24 HOURS OPEN HOUSE: Children living on the streets have no place to go to in crisis situations. Even their basic needs may seem difficult for them to meet. Thus at Shelter Don Bosco, a 24 hour service is provided where any child in need can walk in to seek assistance. Basic services like bathing, washing facilities, health care, savings, counseling, contacting home, etc. are provided here and the child can confidently move in to avail of these and move back to the street whenever he feels like.
Aim and Objectives: To provide immediate and short term services to children living on the streets.
Target group: Roofless and rootless children and youth.
Age Group: below 25 years
4. RESIDENTIAL PROGRAMME, SHELTER DON BOSCO (WADALA): Though an institution is definitely not the best place for a child to be in as compared to the family, for those on the streets without one, Shelter Don Bosco has a residential facility. For the young children who come from various parts of India to Bombay with the aim of earning a better living, Shelter Don Bosco besides providing them with a permanent address, gives them an opportunity to reveal their potentials and fulfill their dreams. They enter Shelter as rag pickers, beggars, shoe shine boys etc. Here living in a group they develop a sense of belonging, safety and new friends. In addition, they are provided with ample opportunities depending on each one’s interest, aptitude and hard work. Once they acquire confidence in themselves they are helped to move out in society as responsible adults and earn their living, settle as a family or return to their natural family. Thus at Shelter, institutional care is considered to be transient care, which transforms them from a non-entity to somebody.
Aims and Objectives:
. To provide Street children with the opportunity of a safe shelter
· To give them an address to belong to. To provide opportunities to acquire educational or vocational skills.
· To assist them in their holistic psychosocial development.
· To help them to get in contact with their natural family and reunite them if possible.
· To assist them to settle down independently in society.
Target Group: Roofless and rootless street children. Age Group: below 14 years to be admitted until they are settled.
Education: Children below the age of 12 are encouraged to attend formal school. Those not interested are given the opportunity for non- formal education. Those who are above 15 years of age and wishing to pursue their studies are provided opportunities to enroll for distance education (through the National Open School). Skill/vocational training: For boys above 14 years who are interested in learning a trade, these are tested for their interest and aptitude, are then prepared and helped to find a suitable placement to learn a trade. This is done in three ways:
A) Boys are placed in small kerbside workshops around Shelter Don Bosco.
B) Those interested in doing a trade from a formal setting are sent to other Don Bosco and other Technical institutes.
C) Some of the older boys learn short term trades courses like tailoring, electrician, electronic, cycle repairs, motor mechanics, screen printing, commercial art, computers, driving, etc.
Personality development: Boys are given adequate opportunities to develop a holistic personality. Their innate talents and potentials are identified and developed. Situational and need based counseling is provided. An ample dose of music, recreation, dance, picnics etc is given. Regular group meetings and discussions enable them to be involved in the decision making process. They are assisted in time of crisis to handle their own individual and group problems.
Health care: During sickness street children are especially vulnerable and helpless. Thus, Shelter Don Bosco gives priority towards preventive, promotive and curative health care. Minor ailments & major sicknesses are tended to. Generally the street children are susceptible to skin diseases, malnutrition, fevers, respiratory disorders and sexually transmitted infections among others.
Hobby centre: Street Children have ample time in hand. If this time is not purposefully directed, they veer towards unproductive and antisocial activities. Instead of condemning their habits, Shelter provides them with various opportunities to develop their hobbies and use their free time gainfully. School children and those in training learn to make greeting cards, bandhani art (tie and dye), plaster of Paris statues, paper bags, paper jewellery etc. Through these, they earn and share the profits. The uniqueness of this is that children have started a cooperative within which they decide what to make. Thus, the hobby centre has successfully helped to gain skills, money and hence empower them.
Missing children's bureau: Shelter Don Bosco has become a well-frequented spot where the parents of the missing children come to look for their children. While some are reunited with their children, others may find clues to their possible whereabouts.
Home placements: Shelter encourages street boys to re-establish ties with their families. Contact is established through letters, telephone calls when possible and home visits. Wherever possible, efforts are made to counsel the family members.
Savings: Most street children live for the day. They are not worried about tomorrow. At Shelter, children are encouraged to have their own small savings. Some of the boys have also opened bank accounts where they keep track of their growing savings.
5. MONTHLY MELA (CELEBRATION): ‘Mela’ means a celebration. Children love celebrations, especially street children because more often than not they are seldom a part of these, rather they have been passive viewers or working behind the scenes at marriages etc. Shelter organizes a monthly Mela or celebration on the 19th and 20th of every month and an average of 500 children attend this Mela each month. It is their own special, holistic celebration of music, dance, film, food, games, competitions coupled with health education and awareness, hair cuts, counseling, water and soap for bathing, material to write letters home, etc. This programme has inspired many other Non Governmental Organizations to start similar celebrations.
Aims and objectives:
· To offer opportunities to the street children to celebrate life.
· To build solidarity among the children.
· To offer facilities which are most needed by the children.
· To provide awareness on topics related to their lives.
Target group: Any roofless and rootless street boy in the city.
Age group: 5 to 20 years.
6. GROWN UP BOYS SETTLEMENT: The main aim of Shelter Don Bosco is to empower them and either reunite them with their natural families or help them settle in society. Once these boys complete their skill training and begin working, they save their earnings in their bank accounts. After a stipulated time, a group is formed of four or five boys, who are provided with an initial deposit to hire a room outside the Institution. Some token amount is also provided to meet their initial expenses, like maintenance, food, marketing and daily living. They are also trained and prepared to share the responsibilities of running the house and as a family start moving into this new home. This would eventually pave the way to set up their own independent family once they get married. Basic assistance in the formation of the group and necessary counseling is given.
Age: 19 and above.
7. KHELWADI ( PAVEMENT KHELWADIS): ‘Khelwadi’ means a playschool; Shelter Don Bosco at present has 13 playschools on the pavements in Mumbai. A majority of the migrant population entering the city settles on the footpaths and pavements of the city. While the parents and adults attempt to make ends meet, the children often roam around the streets unattended. They start contributing to the family income at a very young age by begging, wiping cars, polishing shoes, vending small items, etc. As a result most of them do not attend schools and even become future ‘street kids’. In order to prevent this, Shelter Don Bosco has started Khelwadies for children below 6 years of age, with the aim of keeping them off the streets. Here, children are taught the basics of literacy and community living through games, music, painting, clay modeling, theatre, etc. Children are prepared and encouraged to enter formal school in a fun way while simultaneously, regular meetings with their parents ensure that they realize the importance of education and recognize the potentials of their children, thus following up their progress in formal school.
Aims and objectives:
1. To enable children living with families on the footpath or pavements to enter into the regular government educational system.
2. To minimize or prevent these children from becoming street children.
Target Group: Children of pavement dwellers.
Age: 3 to 7 years.
Geographical areas: Wadala, Bandra, Elphinstone Road, Antop Hill, King’s Circle, Mankhurd.
8. RESEARCH, DOCUMENTATION AND TRAINING CENTRE: The pattern regularly followed in social interventions is that while one set of professionals work at the grassroots with the target group while another set of academicians (not necessarily involved in the field) study and research the issues which define policy change and social advocacy. Shelter Don Bosco created this Centre in response to the growing needs of our existing programmes. What started initially as an aid to assist the documenting of our works and those by other organizations in the field has progressed to include several mini researches and international researches on issues concerning marginalized adolescents and their development. Through this center Shelter hopes to put on record the breadth of work accomplished as also to render scientific results that could attract the attention of policy makers, the community and the world at large.
Target Group: Students, street children, educators, social workers, media persons, and general public.
Aims and Objectives:
· To conduct researches and studies in the field of street children and other children and youth at risk.
· To develop participatory action research in the field of street children and other children and youth at risk.
· To publish the research findings for the benefit of the larger society.
· To use these research findings to bring about a policy change in the issues related to these groups at risk.
· To bring about awareness and offer facilities to the general public to be better acquainted with the issues concerning street children and other children and youth at risk.
· To scientifically document all the activities of Shelter Don Bosco.
· To offer Short-term weekend training programmes and seminars to interested groups and individuals to effectively work with these children.
· To organize meetings and public discussions on the children's issues, to Create public advocacy and to build a child friendly society.
9. THERAPEUTIC CENTRE FOR STREET DRUG DE-ADDICTION AND REHABILITATION: Street children live in very difficult times where the basic unit of security and emotional support, i.e., the family, has broken down. Drugs become a necessity for these children to escape the harsh realities of their existence. It helps them to bear the pain of hunger, violence, and abuse. Children as young as seven and eight years are seen sniffing, snorting, or chasing thinners, whiteners, drugs such as marijuana and heroin. There are very few programmes in India that address children addicted to drugs, leave alone street drug addicts.
Shelter Don Bosco has developed a unique five stage programme to enable these children to move from the depths of addiction on the street to a habilitation off the streets. The programme follows five connected steps or phases, each of which is participatory in nature and works on the child’s innate ability, skill and interest. It is the motivation on the part of the child / adolescent that is the key to the entire programme.
Phase I - Preparation on the Streets
This involves the process of street contact, orientation camps and motivation,
combined with counseling the child about his addictive habits and preparing
him for the Rehabilitation programme. It is a crucial period when clear
information and communication about consequences, process, etc. is of primary
importance.Phase II - Medical Detoxification
During this phase the street child addict is admitted to a local government
hospital for a period of detoxification of his biological system from the
effects of the drug abused. This period may vary from 4 days to 2 weeks.
The children’s general physical health is also catered to during this phase
and psychological assistance is provided via the hospital’s counselors.Phase III - Lonavala Therapeutic Community
In the serene and scenic setting of Lonavala, a hill station on the outskirts
of the city of Mumbai, the next phase commences. A residential, counseling
and psycho-spiritual programme, for the group in Khandala for a period of
12 to 15 weeks or more, is conducted to help the growth and recovery of
these boys. The programme includes yoga, meditation, occupational therapy,
counseling, outdoor activities, recreation and self-discipline, confidence
building, coping strategies, stress management, future life management,
etc.Phase IV- Training Stage
This stage involves skills training programmes in an institutional or in
a residential setup in Shelter Don Bosco, Wadala or a “shanty” in Mumbai
or Lonavala, for a minimum period of 6 months to 1 year for skills training
or academic ventures. This is to facilitate a practical application of lessons
learned in Phases II and III leading eventually to settlement in society
at the end of phase IV. Phase V- Re-integration And Habilitation into
Society
This stage involves reuniting the boys with their families (if possible
and advisable) or helping them settle into a regular and ‘normal’ life style
in society (i.e. (Re) integration in to society). This phase as well as
the first and fourth phases is not time bound, they follow the pace of the
child.Aims and objectives:
· To offer rehabilitation exclusively for street children.
· To (re) habilitate them in to the society by training them in various trades.
Age group: 8 to 22 years.
10. HIV/AIDS AWARENESS AND PREVENTION PROGRAMME: Life on the street is fraught with great risks. Often children on the street, both girls and boys, become victims of various forms of abuse - physical, emotional and sexual. In addition, their economic independence and exposure to drugs and promiscuous relationships makes them highly susceptible to HIV infection.
To respond to this need, Shelter Don Bosco has started an awareness and prevention programme targeting children between the ages of 10-15 years. The rationale for this is that the risk of being abused either heterosexually or homosexually is higher at a younger age, while the curiosity about sex and the desire to explore starts early thus leading to an earlier age of exposure. Thus Shelter Don Bosco intervenes to provide relevant information on issues surrounding sexuality, health and relationships thus assisting in the process of a normal and healthy growth.
Aims and objectives:
· To provide awareness among the children about HIV/AIDS
· To positively affect attitudes relating to the opposite sex
· To provide factual information on physical, emotional and sexual growth and development
· To prevent the spread of the virus.
Target group: Roofless and rootless street children in the city.
Age group: below 17 years
Services rendered: Counseling, health care, awareness programmes, training of peer educators, etc.
11. PARA-PROFESSIONAL TRAINING PROGRAMME FOR STREET YOUTH: Our experiences with the street children have taught us that their personal survival experiences on the street and their resilience is their strength that can enable them to assist others who are on the street. Shelter Don Bosco has initiated a Para-Professional Training Programme wherein street youth are trained in the basics of paraprofessional social work theory along with guided exposure and training on the field. After the completion of this course they have the option of rendering their services at any Non Governmental Organization working with children. Simultaneously, they are also engaged in obtaining other vocational training or academic qualifications, which will further enable them in their upward mobility.
Aims and objectives: To empower street youth to reach out to other street children with one year Para professional social work training.
Target Group: Street Children.
FUTURE PLANS: Shelter Don Bosco was established as a response to the needs of children on the street and each of the many projects has been an attempt to better understand and respond to these growing and changing needs. In the process of Shelter’s growth with the children, Shelter has also widened its scope to reach out to the different groups of children at risk prior to them coming onto the street. In this regard we have many new projects in the pipeline which we are sure will soon see the light of day. The processes for most of these have already commenced.
1. Khelwadis: The 13 Khelwadis or playschools started by Shelter Don Bosco has met with a tremendous positive response from children, their parents and guardians. At present over 400 children are covered by the programme with an equal number having been helped to enter into formal school. Shelter Don Bosco now plans to replicate this model in several new areas, thus reaching out to many more children with opportunities for joyful learning and as near normal a childhood as possible.
2. Therapeutic Centre For Street Drug De-Addiction And Rehabilitation, Lonavla: The Street Drug De-Addiction and Rehabilitation programme at Lonavla has reoriented the lives of over 500 children over the past three years. With a large number of them trying to reintegrate into society and lead regular normal lives, many more inspired by the success of their peers seek to enter the programme. Currently we have the facility to accommodate a maximum of 20 street child addicts in this programme. Shelter Don Bosco plans to build a new facility to accommodate 2 units of 25 street children each. This would enable us to have two separate batches at a time catering to many more street children victimized by substance abuse.
3. Drop-In-Centre: There is an urgent need to open many more drop in centres where children can avail of the facilities there. These need to be in a close proximity to the place where children normally stay. Presently Shelter Don Bosco has one such drop in centre at Dadar (Central Mumbai) and is planning to open several such centers in other parts of Western India.
4. Mobile Clinic: The first step in reaching out to the children is meeting them on their own ‘turf’ and understanding their situation from their point of view. As with other areas, so also in the area of health and hygiene, it is the lack of basic facilities, past experiences and a fear of rejection that prevents street children from accessing and availing of preventive and curative health services when they need these. Often, street children neglect or treat illnesses on their own for as long as they can, which sometimes may be too late for medical intervention. Keeping this in mind, Shelter Don Bosco is in the process of starting a mobile street clinic to be manned by a trained Doctor, nurse and social worker, which will cover areas where street children live. The vehicle will also be equipped with material to promote positive health education through exhibitions and other awareness programmes.
5.Non-formal education programmes: A large number of children coming onto the streets are also from the many slum pockets dotting the city. Our interactions with these children reveal their desire to learn and be educated although their poverty stricken families can barely afford formal education. Opportunities for non-formal education are seldom easily available or accessible and these are often not tailored to meet their needs. Shelter Don Bosco is in the process of starting an intervention along these lines in one community, at present, on a trial basis, to respond to this strongly felt need. The methodology and material for these programmes is being developed indigenously by our team.
6. Youth Village: Macro problems need macro responses. Shelter Don Bosco has over the years evolved various programmes in response to the needs of children of the street and other groups of vulnerable children. At present, we are in the process of setting up a village for and of marginalized youth on the outskirts of the city of Mumbai. These would include children (both boys and girls) from the streets, slum communities, school dropouts, migrant populations, tribal communities and many other marginalized youth groups. The activities envisaged would include training in a variety of urban and rural based vocational skills, community living, entrepreneurship, etc. directed towards a gradual empowerment and reintegration into society.
7. Replication of model to other Western Indian cities: Through our experiences over the years we have learned a number of important lessons which have enabled us to work more effectively. At present we are also in the process of sharing and transferring this information to other Western Indian towns and cities which have a large population of street children, but where this phenomenon is fairly new. We hope to be able to thus reach out to many more young people and make a positive difference before the street causes more harm to them. Processes for this are currently on in Nagpur, Pune and Goa.
8. Networking with rural areas from where these children originate