By the time her daughter was five months old, Deepa Mohanraj suspected that something was not quite right with her. “Richee was diagnosed with Craniosynostosis, a condition that prevents brain development. I went into depression and had suicidal thoughts. Richee underwent surgery and in time I accepted my child for what she is.”
There are still remnants of shock in Deepa’s voice as she recalls the hunt for a school for Richee. “Most of the special schools in Coimbatore district were dirty and the children were neither given any training nor care. This is when I decided to start a school.” And so Kaumaram Prashanthi Academy was established in 2006. Annapoorna Jayaram, the mother of a child with Down Syndrome and someone who had years of experience handling intellectually-challenged children, joined Deepa. “Initially there were only three students; now we have 200 students and 90 staff across the two branches in Coimbatore and Tiruppur. This include a group of professionals like speech pathologist, naturopathy doctors, communication therapist, occupational therapist, music therapist and physiotherapist. In addition to this, our teachers also receive regular workshops from special education experts.”
COIMBATORE, TAMIL NADU, 15/07/2019: Deepa Mohanraj, Founder Director, Kaumaram Prashanthi Academyin Coimbatore, on July 15, 2019. Photo:S. Siva Saravanan/ The Hindu
“When the children come to us, we analyse their skills and provide early intervention that develops their language and social skills. We understand that each child has potential and we want to bring it out.” They group children based on their age. “Peer socialising is important. We further categorise children in each class according to their capability,” she explains. The academy has students from three to 25 years.
As we talk, a student offers caramel cake that he has made. “He has Global Developmental Delay (GDD) and we are training him and 35 others who are good in vocational skills in baking, manufacturing skincare products and paper bags. The skincare range is called Pure and Special and is organic. The oils come from my farm.” They manufacture in small batches depending on the order. “We need at least two months advance notice. For regular customers and for orders made for special occasions we decorate the products with paper tags made from upcycled invitation cards that we receive in our school. These cards are made into a pulp with water. Seeds are added to it before it is dried and cut to shape. All proceeds go towards their education.”
It was paper bags that the children first made. “We added other products with time. Around 60% of our students come from economically backward families and need sponsorship. So, instead of asking people for money, we taught them to manufacture products that would in turn support their education, give them skills, self respect and a monthly salary.” The teachers train and assist the students throughout the manufacturing process. “We have also tied up with Vivanta Coimbatore and the students who bake go there for training once a week,” she says.
At the recent Crafts Bazaar, the school had a stall where 200 cakes of soaps “were sold out on the second day itself.” While they are open to taking Diwali orders, Deepa mentions that they cannot process very large numbers. “It has to be of limited quantity and we need time to fulfil it.”
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