Mumbai: Donations dry up, orphanages struggle to survive amid Covid-19 pandemic

Orphanages in Mumbai and Thane are facing their worst challenge amid the Coronavirus pandemic since physical distancing protocol has prompted the government to impose a ban on visitors NGOs working for these homes said that this has led to a sudden and sharp drop in the supply of food and donations for the young inmates At the same time their resources have been stretched since expenses have gone up in an effort to protect the residents under their care from the contagionBirthday parties and many other donorsponsored functions always brought cheer to the orphans at childrenrsquos homes With restrictions ordered by the Child Welfare Committee CWC administrators say they have no idea when the kids will be able to smile and dance againShrikant Joshi secretary of Vatsalya Trust Kanjurmarg PicsRajesh GuptaOn August 29 eighteen of 102 kids from Chembur Childrenrsquos Home at Mankhurd tested positive for COVID Though all were asymptomatic they were shifted to a quarantine centre near Vashi Naka Few days before that 26 inmates including 15 kids from Agripadas St Joseph School and Orphanage caught the viral disease At the same time 14 children from an orphanage from Ulhasnagar were also infectedAlso ReadRTPCR test at Mumbai airport compulsory for passengers from Europe China BMCEver since the pandemic struck last year orphanages have been struggling to manage their affairs In July 2020 a guard at the Mankhurd home succumbed to the viral infection triggering strict regulations In the same month 26 kids at a home for special children in the vicinity tested positive and were moved to the BKC Jumbo centre and all recovered wellNityanand Aashram at Kashimira in Mira Road It has 12 children and 117 senior citizens Last year 58 inmates from this centre got COVIDAuthorities said they have taken the harsh decision of banning visitors as experts have been warning of a third wave and that it would hit children hardmidday visited some of the orphanages to take a firsthand view of the challenges faced by them The difficulties spanned from food supply to staff salary to maintenance chargesVatsalya Trust KanjurmargThe number of kids at this centre has gone up in the past one and half years Some of the kids were abandoned on the streets a clear sign of the distress that has hit the people The centre has 25 children between 2 and 15 years of age and no outsider is allowed to meet on the orders of the CWCShrikant Joshi secretary of Vatsalya Trust told midday ldquoIn lockdown the number of kids had gone up to 40 and it has come down to 25 now With no help coming from outside our caretakers are managing everything They are our heroesrdquo The centre had started facilitating adoptions in July 2020 though it was stopped due to the pandemic ldquoOur inhouse doctors regularly check the kids and staff Earlier we had even given paid leave to a few employees after they got a cough and fever But the safety measures have eaten up our funds and we barely get any donations nowadaysrdquo he saidSamajik Vikas Kendra at Dindoshi in Malad East is home to 15 girls of 618 years Birthday and festival celebrations have all stopped due to the restrictionsA staffer said many donors who are businessmen themselves are struggling financially ldquoWe have been running this trust since 1983 and have helped in the adoption of over 1200 kids We have 100 staff members and it is quite difficult to pay themrdquo he saidBal Kalyan Nagri Agar Wadi MankhurdThe centre has 62 girls between 7 and 18 years of age and 24 staffers Superintendent Madhuri Ramekar said ldquoWe do RTPCR tests of our children every 15 days The girls are attending their online classes and we are providing them with devices and booksrdquo While some of the girls have been sent to the centre by their parents who are too poor to take care of their wards they are also not allowed to meet them She said ldquoWe have put up a banner outside our main gate saying our centre is in a containment zone though we dont have any positive cases We are allowing kids to go outside only for medical purposesrdquoThis facility too is crippled over finances ldquoOur donations have dried up Earlier we would celebrate birthdays anniversaries festivals and many more things but all stopped due to COVID Somehow we manage and fulfil the childrenrsquos needs Online education has also cost us a lotrdquo she saidChristopher of Community Development Centre Malad say theyrsquore directly buying vegetables from Nashik to save moneyCommunity Development Centre Malad WestThis center has 21 children of 618 years and 30 employees Despite dwindling financial support this NGO helps 2000 street and slum children and those living in red light areas Christopher a director said ldquoDonors like to ensure that their money is being used for the right cause Since nobody is allowed to meet the kids and that we have also stopped all functions for visitors nobody is giving donations directly We have started special drives for donations and small corporations are helping us now Someone is giving rice dal and groceries and someone is donating money To save money we are buying all vegetables from a Nashik farmrdquoChristopher who goes by one name said the centre has a doctor and they give concoctions made of tulsi neem ginger and other common immunity boosters to the kids ldquoFortunately we havenrsquot had any cases so far We hope things will go smoothly and we will receive help soonrdquoA stafferrsquos temperature being taken at Vatsalya Trust in KanjurmargSamajik Vikas Kendra Dindoshi Malad EastThis center has 15 girls of 618 years Its founder Vijay Karande said ldquoCWC sends children to them for care We have another centre at Malwani that houses 10 boys Many visitors have told us that they are ready to donate but would like to spend time with the kids and celebrate events with them But we had to decline their requests as we canrsquot take any risks Donors donrsquot realise that money given by them will be used on food for the kids We also feed children who beg on the roads None of our kids has got COVID so farrdquoNityanand Aashram Kashimira Mira RoadThe centre is home to 12 children as many employees and 117 senior citizens Rupesh Patil the incharge said ldquoEarlier we nearly collapsed financially though donations have started coming in slowly In the first lockdown 58 inmates got COVID and 7 senior citizens were infected during the second lockdown BMC has helped us with 3 monthsrsquo rationrdquo lsquoItrsquos for the safety of kidsrsquoUrmila Jadhav a CWC member said ldquoCurrently many COVID cases have increased in city in orphanages We informed all NGOs to strictly follow COVID guidelines and not allow any visitors to meet the kids We also informed them to conduct COVID tests if anyone shows any symptoms Due to the lockdown NGOs are also facing financial issues and the BMC IS supporting them Earlier we instructed all orphanages to have 15day shifts for their employees but itrsquos not for everyone as they also have their families Visitors are restricted for the safety of the kidsrdquo25No of children currently staying at Vatsalya Trust