Talk of the town

On the occasion of children's day, Lions Club of Pune organised a celebration for hearing and speech impaired children at P L Deshpande garden in Dattavadi.

Destiny’s children
On the occasion of children’s day, Lions Club of Pune organised a celebration for hearing and speech impaired children at P L Deshpande garden in Dattavadi.

According to Dattatray Patharkar, district chairperson, Lions club service for children, “Over 3000 children from more than 40 schools in Pune participated in the event. Destiny has made them special children but that does not mean they miss the fun that normal children do. We thought of coming up with a carnival involving special children and approached a number of schools before finalising the event. The idea was an instant hit with the school authorities.”

These children along with 325 of their teachers were provided refreshments upon their arrival. “After this we held a sports segment where students participated in games such as jumping, merry go round and balloon shooting. It was followed by a cultural segment which saw a Shivaji Maharaj procession and a Kathi yudh ( Talwar Bazi) performed by the Sinhgad Trekkers Group,” says Patharkar.

Story continues below this ad

The evening bore witness to dance performances by Vasudev, Kadaklakshmi and kathputli by various artistes. “This was well greeted by the children. The smiles on their faces conveyed the expressions,” says he.

Adoption, a good option
To highlight the importance of child’s rights issue, Society of Friends of Sassoon hospital (SOFOSH) organised an adoption awareness event on November 20 at Udyan Prasad Bhawan, Sadashiv Peth from 6-8 pm.

Speaking about the event, Madhuri Abhyankar, director, SOFOSH says, “It is the first -of- its -kind event in India that will witness both- adoptees and adoptive parents sharing the same dais. A panel of experts related to the field of adoption will interview them. Using this approach we hope to bring to the surface, the problems faced by these children.”

She further adds, “It is very difficult to understand the plight of these children who are branded as outcasts. When a child enters our organisation, a lot of social stigma is attached to them and it is this that we are trying to break. It is the society’s duty to look after and provide support that these children need. The government has recently signed the UN charter for preserving the rights of children. Hence it is imperative to protect their rights and provide a good future to them.”

Story continues below this ad

Pointing out the fact that that parents seeking adoption are influenced by the age, complexion and gender of the children she says, “We are trying to create an awareness amongst people who are looking forward for adoption. In fact there is a recent trend of second generation adoptees that are now married and are also coming forward for adopting children.”

Kids’ day out
It was a special day for the 41 children from Door Step School as they were taken to the Snake Park in Katraj to spend half a day on a guided tour by the staff of Amplify Mindware DITM. The children from the NGO were picked up by a bus from their School in Pune and taken to the Snake Park in Katraj. The children from school had an amazing time as they were awed by the various kinds of reptiles and also by the information they received about them. The tour started at 1:30pm and winded up by 5. The kids were all excited and thrilled and were seen talking and discussing the different kinds of snakes they saw. The activity was followed up with a luncheon for them during their visit and was dropped back to their School.