Children of a Lesser God!

by Prof Narendra Nayak

Mangalore, Apr 5: I should say I am pretty hard boiled, having worked for many years in the field of clinical biochemistry, that too for the first years as a technical assistant collecting blood specimen from a variety of patients which has innured me to the hardships of disease. But what I experienced on April 3 wrenched my gut!

My friends Ajit and Raja  who are conneced with a leading restaurant wanted to do something for children who were really deserving. My wife Asha who is the president of the child welfare committee and in-charge of many of such children's facilties suggested feeding the children who were in a special home for the HIV positive. So we decided to do that. She also suggested that it was not just about giving them something that was important but also making them feel loved. So, on the day of providing them food we also decided to visit them and see for ourselves.

There are two such shelters for the HIV positive children under her supervision- one for the boys and the other for girls. The smaller ones are accommodated along with the girls who also take care of them. There were 24 in the girls home and 36 in the boys. It was really a moving experience for the three of us who were going there for the first time. The children were like all of their age groups, affectionate, playful and naughty. They were very thankful that some one has given them good food to eat.

On the day we had gone their school vacations were to start. Piped up a little one- that her maternal uncle was coming to take her home, another one said that her grandmother would come, so  did a third one!Some of them who had no one to take them however put up a brave face and conveyed that they were going to stay there itself, as if it was their considered decision and not thrust upon them! Suddenly, the president of the CWC, who happens to be my wife Asha was quite stern - she ordered the person in-charge, that if any one were to take them home, they would have to submit an application, appear personally before her and bring them back a week before the school reopens. They had also to see that their medication was properly administered.

All of them had two things in common - one was that they were HIV positive and the other was that they had been abandoned by the society. There were a few babies found in dust bins, orphans whose parents had died, some with one parent dead and the other not able to take care of the child. They had been all infected at birth and doomed to a short life despite of the medication. In fact there was none in the institutions who was above 18. There are special rooms provided in the facility for taking  care of them when they have minor ailments and also nurses to tend to them. One good thing was all of them were going to schools and only to goverment schools because no school can refuse admission to such a child.

First we went to the girls' home where the older girls were tending to the youngest ones. There was one baby who had been thrown in a dust bin, There were quite a few pre-schoolers and a few attending junior college too! Several were not keeping well and had been hospitalised. We were greeted with great affection by these children who thanked us for having given them that days meals.
               
Then we went to the boys home where they were all busy in one room. They were all being given their ART medicine that time. The story of the boys too were similar. However, as boys tend to be they wanted to play the rough sorts of the games that the boys usually play. There were some facilities like a sand pit, seesaws, swings and such.

When we wanted to photograph them with the donors of that day's meals we had to ask them to turn their backs as their privacy has to be maintained. They were quite sad that they were being asked to do that. However, soon after, I made them pose together and photographed them with their smiling faces, which I would have loved to show but cannot due to the above reason. When I showed them the the monitor they were so delighted and were arguing with each other as to whose pose was better! They too fall ill and when their immune systems get weak and the cycle of hospitalisation and death were the same as for the girls.
  
The three of us were very much moved by the experience and found it very difficult to control our emotions. Fighting back our tears we came out and I remembered the motto of the Roman gladiators - we who are to die young salute thee! However, these young gladiators were doomed since birth, thanks to their careless parents and shunned by a callous society. The sadness was that despite knowing that all of them were doomed to die in a few years they were not aware of it and were living happy lives like all childen of their age. We were told that there has been a cut in the grants to this home run by an organisation called CARDTS. Would you like to make them happy or like to contribute something directly to them? We could co-operate with you in making their short lives a little sweeter and happier.

For more details contact Prof Narendra Nayak - 94482 16343