Shelter: Regarpura
Homes - New Delhi
Mahila Evam Bal Grah, 100 Quarter Chowk, Jag Jivan Niwas, Gali No. 3, Regarpura, Karol Bagh
Why
- Women and their children cared for at the shelter come from diverse backgrounds and are abandoned and emotionally traumatised. Some are rape victims, unwed teen mothers, women who had been forced into sex trafficking, women whose husbands have remarried and aged women rejected by their families. The trauma they have suffered often results in them losing their dreams and the joy of living.
- At present, the shelter is overcrowded without access to privacy. Forty women and 20 children of all ages live together in one common dormitory. Some women and children have lived at the shelter for years due to the lack of opportunity to be rehabilitated, leaving no place for new women to be admitted.
- Most women have young children and no one to care for them if they find employment. Some work as cleaners in the local area, earning meagre wages. Many were begging as the shelter originally only provided a place to sleep and they could not afford meals. Since the introduction of daily nutritious meals, a significant reduction in aggression between women living here has been observed.
- Volunteers are a surrogate family and provide a support structure for the families to bring back the joy that they have lost in their lives and their sense of security. They are supported to rebuild their lives and self-esteem. Counselling with love and kindness has helped to restore their dignity and sense of self worth.
Programme
The shelter is housed in a government building and run another NGO. Our involvement so far has included the provision of:
- 2 balanced meals and snacks daily in addition to the meal provided by the NGO.
- counselling
- medical care
- toiletries and essentials for every day needs
- sponsorship for children’s education
- extracurricular activities, field trips, functions and celebrations of festivals.
Vision
- To secure sponsorship to renovate and upgrade the shelter.
- To further provide quality education and varied extracurricular activities for the children and a crèche for children too young to attend school.
- To settle women under 18 into homes where they can pursue academics and vocational training to prepare them for the future.
- To empower women by teaching skills and assisting them to find employment and thus be independent.
- To rehabilitate elderly women into homes for the aged where they will be comfortable in surroundings catering to their needs.
Samarpan Foundation manages this project in collaboration with Ashrey Adhikar Abhiyan.
