To ensure that the children of Rainbow Homes are safe during the outbreak of Coronavirus, various activities to create awareness regarding the signs, symptoms and prevention are being carried out at these homes. Located on the premises of government schools and run under the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyaan (SSA), these homes ensure that underprivileged children receive proper education and care all under one roof.
During the outbreak of the pandemic, the children were allowed to continue living in these homes in order to prevent them from the virus. As a part of the awareness programme, emphasis is given on the importance of frequent hand washing, use of sanitizers, masks and adhering to social distancing norms. With educational institutions closed, online classes for them are also carried out via local media. For their physical and mental well being regular sessions of yoga, games, quizzes and other activities are also conducted.
In order to get these children into the mainstream, the Ranchi district administration has been running two Rainbow Homes in the City since December 2018. Started with 13 girls, presently, the two facilities- one each for girls and boys are located at the Rajyakrit Government Primary School Kute which has 48 girls while the Rajyakrit Government Middle School, Bariatu has 52 boys.
“The Ranchi district administration is running two shelter homes in association with Rainbow Homes. Currently, 100 children are being benefitted by this initiative. The project is showing a very positive impact on the children who were previously found to be living on the streets,” said Deputy Development Commissioner Ananya Mittal.
The children aged between five to 15 years are provided with all basic amenities such as food, clothing, education and health care at the Rainbow Homes.
The children who were identified by the volunteers were either seen begging at crossings or outside temples, rag pickers, orphans or their parents work as daily wage labourers and domestic help.
As a part of this programme, the school drop outs are also trained under a bridge course till they achieve minimum competence to be enrolled in an appropriate class. These children are also inculcated with life skills and efforts are made to introduce them in the mainstream. The homes aim to take responsibility for the children till the age of 18 and also help them in enrolling in government schools for higher education.