Raksha Society for Care of Children with Special Needs was founded with four children and a staff of three in April, 1985. It was envisioned as a school for children with cerebral palsy along with services such as physiotherapy and special education. However due to the rapid increase in children and families requiring these services, we had difficulty in meeting their needs. Rather than ignore the problem, we set up a Home-Based Training Centre, which invites parents of children with special needs to come and receive, at various intervals, instruction and guidance for the management of their child. This would be supplemented with direct intervention wherever necessary.
We also discovered that it was not enough to concentrate on just one disability. At that time, there were no support systems available for people with neurological impairments in our area. We enlarged the scope of our training to include children with mental retardation, autism, muscular dystrophy, learning disabilities and developmental delay. We also started an out-reach programme at a second location, Vypeen Island which currently functions as a special school.
In the next few years, as the number of children increased, so did the need for trained personnel. This resulted in the setting up of Raksha Institute of Special Education in 1993. As our young students grew up to become young adults, we were faced with a new problem - that of employment. Thus the Vocational Training Unit came into existence. Subsequently, a separate Department of Physiotherapy, Occupational therapy, Speech, Language and Communication therapy and Counseling and Behaviour Management was also instituted which would enhance all aspects of the Society’s work.
Thus today, the Raksha Society comprises:
- Raksha Special School
- Raksha Institute of Special Education
- Raksha Vocational Training Centre
- Department of Physiotherapy, Occupational therapy, Speech, Language and Communication therapy and Counseling and Behaviour Management
Twenty-three years of working among special children taught us many important things about disability which do not form part of any curriculum. New ideas and techniques, both homegrown and imported, have in recent years made significant contribution to the attitudes and techniques we adopt in our work. Raksha has grown tremendously from being just a Special School to a multi-faceted, multidisciplinary organization. Now we provide various kinds of services from special education, physiotherapy, speech and language therapy, occupational therapy, dance, yoga, music and art to students. Raksha has worked towards creating awareness about various disabilities in the community by conducting workshops and seminars. We have also made our mark in disability issues like barrier-free environment and inclusive education.