#EmpoweringTheSpeciallyabled

We are a Charitable Trust dedicated to the rehabilitation & generation of sustainable livelihoods for the differently-abled children & young adults of the rural plantation community of Munnar, Kerala

In 1991, we had pledged to educate & further rehabilitate differently-abled children & young adults. The network of the then Tata Tea facilitated and assisted us in the identification of the differently-abled children of the plantation workers through their specially appointed welfare officers in various divisions of the wide-spread tea plantation who were forced to be left alone at home for lack of day-care or education possibilities.

Our mission was to impart vocational education & further generating sustainable livelihood possibilities when they graduate.

Our Welfare Institutes engage their creativity, creating hand-made products while adopting sustainable production methods by recycling, up-cycling and using natural materials.

The Trust is supported by TATA Consumer Products Limited & TATA Trusts

Creation’ |

A pledge to educate the specially-abled young adults through DARE School providing full-fledged training in functional academics. Special educators explore & guide children in self-help & social skills. Young adults are empowered with vocational training.

Nature’ |

A vision to nurture and engage with the intense natural world of human creativity. A mission to generate sustainable livelihoods for the specially-abled youth & young adults of the rural plantation town of Munnar.

Universe’ |

The will to engage with the Universe of talent — through education, self-help skills, social & vocational training. An endeavour to provide avenues of sustainability & livelihood sans restrictions of physical & mental capabilities.

Handiwork’ |

An undertaking to enhance possibilities for the youth to be nurtured into artists by experts in their respective craft domains and to develop their skills in the Universe of Human Craft and Handicraft.

— all synonyms of “Srishti” and the foundations of our existence —

Our youth are nurtured into artists by experts in their respective craft domains to develop their skills in the Universe of Human Craft and Handicraft. The benefit of this is multifold. The specially-abled youth are imparted education in functional academics & are trained in social & self-help skills along with vocational skills.

a wish to fulfil a necessity…

The rolling hills of Munnar in the Western Ghats of South India is a nature lovers paradise with its verdant forests and abundant flora and fauna and rolling carpets of tea. Home to families whose ancestors migrated to the lush hills from neighbouring states in search of livelihood possibilities at the tea plantations owned by Tata Tea.
Tea picking - a laborious 9 hour, physically demanding & labour intensive activity, has an all-year-round harvesting cycle. Some of these families working on these plantations were faced with the difficult option of leaving their young, physically & mentally challenged children, at home all day while they tended the fields.

The children of the rural plantation community, many of whom were and are born differently-abled with both mental and physical challenges, are incapable of looking after themselves. As they grow older they lack the special education required to make a livelihood or mingle in society.

pre primary class activity.jpg — an aspiration…

Our pledge to educate differently-abled children led to further rehabilitation of the young adults through vocational education & avenues to generate sustainable livelihood possibilities when they graduate.
—
30 years on our 8 Welfare Institutes engage their creativity and provide sustainable livelihood possibilities through ethically produced products that empower them as individuals and enrich their families.

Today they contribute to a more productive society and environmentally friendly living through their creations.

Today we “DARE to Dream”

We have been actively engaged in community activities in Munnar through food aid that we contribute towards during calamities. We contribute to the community of specially-abled adults and their family by providing accommodation, healthcare & nutrition. We are active participants in the sports community of Munnar through our special educators who facilitate specially-abled athletes to participate alongside other athletes in the sporting community — enforcing hope and engaging dreams.

Our Welfare Institutes

Specially-abled young adults create hand-made products while adopting sustainable production techniques & methods by up-cycling, re-cycling and using natural materials.