Students

Anu (9 yrs) belongs to a very poor family. His father is a landless labourer and mother a housewife. A part of the monthly income is spent on the treatment of his mother, who often remains sick. Anu has an older brother (13 yrs) and a younger sister (5 yrs). The older brother Satbir is also mentally challenged. His grand parents also live with them, raising the total number of family members to seven. The environment in the family is congenial. Anu is mentally challenged since birth. On account of poverty and lack of awareness the two brothers were not taken to any hospital. Anu also has a problem with his eyesight as well as his speech – his speech is indistinct. He had the habit of constantly sucking at his thumb and making incoherent sounds. He had never handled a pencil and paper and his grip is weak. He also had the habit of pinching other children due to which no one liked to sit with him. His general appearance was very dirty and unkempt. He had learnt some swear words from the villagers which he would often utter in the class.This boy had never been to any school before and used to loiter around aimlessly in the village. Anu joined Pehal School, Madhuban, in September 2008. He was reluctant to come to Pehal in the beginning and was very restive. He used to cry a lot and never wanted to sit in the classroom. His concentration span was very small. He was therefore initiated into Pehal by introducing him to games and singing and other such group activities and the teachers devoted extra care to him to make him friendly. This continued for almost three months. He started liking the school after that He was gradually introduced to copy and pencil and encouraged to draw various shapes including lines, circles, squares etc. Very slowly with the help of pictures he was introduced to Hindi and English alphabet and numbers. The academic part was kept very light for him. Gradually he started picking it up. The teacher would hold his hand with pencil and make him write. In order to improve his power of concentration and coordination between hands, eyes and mind he was engaged in tasks like putting one brick on top of the other, stringing coloured beads etc. He was also introduced to reading and writing the alphabets and numbers, and identification of colours. In the initial days it was a problem as he would chew up the pencil -gradually however this habit ceased. He was also taught to keep clean and wash his hands and face everyday after arrival at school. His habit of using swear words at others was also controlled. It seems that in his ( 31 ) village he was teased by the villagers who use to call him "Kamli" which means a lunatic. He initially used this word for others including his teachers. Slowly, with a lot of patience on the part of the teachers this habit has been controlled to a great extent. There has been a substantial improvement in this child during the last one year. He is now very eager to come to school everyday and is always ready to finish the work given to him. His voice also seems to have slightly improved as his pronunciation is more distinct. He participates in the morning prayers and tries to sing aloud. He has stopped chewing at his pencil. He keeps clean and regularly brings his handkerchief to school. He has also stopped pinching. His behavior has improved, he greets visitors with a 'Namaste' and offers them a chair to sit, and has stopped using swear words. Anu is very considerate and is always willing to help smaller children. At Pehal there is a small boy Rahul who is deaf and dumb and cannot walk properly. One day he fell down while playing outside. As Anu saw him, he lifted him and brought him in and seated him in a chair. In another incident, during the month of January when it was biting cold, some sweaters were being distributed among Pehal children. There was a little boy Saurabh on whom no sweater would fit. We decided to get a sweater of his size later. However it was noticed after a while that Anu was making this child wear his own oversized sweater. This showed his concern for other children.

Chand Kaur is 30 years old. She has four younger sisters and two younger brothers. Her younger sisters are all married except the youngest one. Her parents work as laborers. One of the younger brother who is 20 year old also works as a laborer and helps the parents in earning a livelihood for the family. Chand Kaur has not been mentally normal since childhood - though physically she is like any other girl of her age. She was shown only to the village physicians who was of no avail. She had never been to any school, nor was ever interested in studies. She would loiter around in the village aimlessly hurling abuses at people, hitting and troubling them - especially smaller children. She also had the habit of biting people. She would keep dirty and was very short-tempered. Everybody - even her siblings - used to avoid her company. Sometimes she would pounce upon her mother in a fit of temper and try to strangle her. She was also used to smoking bidis offered to her by some women in the village. Once Chand Kaur's mother learnt about Pehal School and brought her here. In the initial days Chand Kaur had a lot of problem at Pehal. She was not used to a school environment and company of children. She was very indiscipline would do what pleased her and if anyone tried to control her; she would vent her anger on smaller children by hitting them. She would laugh awkwardly without reason. Slowly, with a lot of patient handling, Chand Kaur started coming round and listening to the teacher. As she was not interested in anything except dancing, her familiarization started with group dances and songs in which other children also participated. She slowly became friendly with them. In course of time, her hygiene, habits and appearance also improved. She developed the habit of washing her hands before and after meals and pick up refuse if any. She also developed a special attachment for a small boy Prince, and would always ensure that Prince has eaten his food properly and washed his hands. This was a pleasant change in her personality as otherwise she never showed any attachment with even her own sisters or brothers. Now she has become very fond of the school, and as informed by her parents, hurries up every morning to get ready for the school bus. Her anger level has shown a significant reduction. One day during a brief absence of the teacher, some children tore up her notebook and one girl bit her hand. Instead of hitting them back as was her habit earlier, she started crying. When the teacher returned and came to know of it she assuaged her and scolded the other children. Chand Kaur is the eldest child in the family and all her younger sisters except one got married right in front of her eyes. She remembers very well the fine clothes worn by them, the bangles, 'lehanga', 'chunni'and necklace etc and insists that she would also get married. One day all the girls of Pehal School were given glass bangles of different colors. Chand Kaur was very happy to wear them, and started singing and dancing. Chand Kaur's progress in studies has been extremely slow. She has learnt very little of alphabet and numbers and is not interested in learning them. She is, however, interested in painting and necklace making. She also enthusiastically participates in all extra – curricular activities like sports, singing and dancing. Recently in a competition among differently abled children of similar schools in Karnal, her performance was appreciated by one and all. Her overall behavior and personality has changed a lot. Now she greets everyone with a 'namaste'. Her aggressiveness has also vanished. Her parents and the villagers are very happy to see the change in her.

Jatin is 19 year old. He has two brothers. His grandmother also lives with him along with his parents and siblings. The financial position of this agricultural family is comparatively satisfactory. Jatin is mentally challenged since birth. He also has impaired speech. His parents have spent a lot of money on his treatment, but to no avail. The family environment is amiable although Jatin's parents worry a lot about his future. Jatin is generally loved by his family and neighbours. He looks like a normal boy of his age. When Jatin came to Pehal first, he was a very unruly child. He would hit smaller children indiscriminately and disturb the teachers and other students of Pehal. It took quite some time to befriend him and teach basic manners. His education at Pehal was started by teaching him about cleanliness, washing of hands before eating food changing clothes and fastening of buttons. He was very resistant to these ideas in the beginning, but gradually learnt this and now observes it meticulously. He was also told the basic etiquette about how to behave with other children in the class and enjoy their company. He was somewhat quarrelsome in the beginning but gradually his behavior has improved and now he is helpful to the children around him. He has also been taught about keeping things at their proper place. Like other children, he is slowly learning Hindi and English alphabets and numbers, colouring of paper and folding of sheets - and is also enjoying group activities like singing and dancing despite the fact that his speech is not clear. He also takes interest in other chores like cleaning the room, watering plants, helping children wash hands etc. He still has occasional fits and the treatment continues. His speech remains impaired as no local help is available to him to look into this aspect and provide guidance. He has during these months become somewhat self dependent in maintaining himself at school and home, and has rid himself of many of his troublesome habits .

Krishna is a 13 year old boy. He has an older sister (16 yrs) and a younger brother (12 yrs). His grand parents also live with them – making it a seven member family. His father is a farmer and his earnings are enough to maintain the family. Krishna had fever in his early childhood which lasted more than three months, after which, as mentioned by his family members, some abnormality in his behavior was noticed. According to some doctors though, he appears to have been abnormal since birth. He has a weak memory and his speech is somewhat indistinct. In the initial days at Pehal he would try to sit in a corner all by himself and would keep very quiet. He had the habit of sucking his thumb and sometimes would also bite his hand. He was a bit obstinate and short tempered and would constantly quarrel with his brother and sister and abuse them. He was not responsive to anyone including his teachers. Gradually, after a few months at Pehal his attitude and behavior started changing. He started mixing and playing with other children and very slowly started learning the alphabets, numbers, names of animals, colors etc. He also started participating in sports and cultural activities and his shyness substantially reduced. Krishna found it very difficult to pronounce the number 'Panch' (5). He could not speak out both the syllables together properly. The teacher therefore thought of splitting it into 'Paan……' and 'ch……' – splitting the two syllables. Now he does not stumble in pronouncing this number. He has now been in Pehal for two years. During this period his behavior has changed significantly. Now he plays with other children and shares his meals with them. He has stopped use of abusive language and greets people with a 'namaste'. He can wear his clothes himself. His progress in his studies, however, has been slow. He has developed attachment with a younger boy Vishal. He sometimes tries to teach him and also tries to stop him from doing mischief.

Manish comes from a very poor family. His father is a labourer, but whatever he earns is blown by him in liquor. He does not give anything to the family. His mother does odd jobs in the neighbourhood households and her meager income is the only means of meeting the household expenses. He has an older brother who too is mentally challenged. His grandmother lives with him. His father's drinking habit causes a lot of problems for the family as a result of which there is always tension and quarrel between husband and wife. His father has no attachment with the children. Manish was studying in a village school before joining Pehal at Kaimla. He was very irregular and did not learn anything there - mostly because the school environment was not congenial for a child like him, and nobody paid any attention to him. He also had the habit of pilfering things. In the beginning Manish found Pehal School strange, as the environment here was informal, there were few children and the teacher paid individual attention to all children. He liked the singing, dancing and playing with which the school started its daily activity, but would often attempt to leave the school by jumping over the gate (The school at that time was being run in the village community building). Once he remained absent from school for a long time on account of some wedding in the family and then he altogether stopped coming – after which the teacher had to meet his mother and persuade her to send him again to school. He became regular after that and slowly started liking it. He was also gradually introduced to Hindi and English alphabets and numbers. After a few months, in May 2008, the school was shifted to Madhuban. Manish enjoyed the bus ride in company of other children and now he regularly comes to school. Besides reading and writing, he has also been taught necklace making, colouring and card making. He participates in sports and other physical activities conducted at the school. His mother and other people in the village are very happy to see improvement in this child.

Naveen is a 17 year old boy. He has three younger sisters and a younger brother. His father is a farmer. His grand parents also live with them. The family income is barely sufficient to provide for the necessities. Naveen has a poor memory. His legs are also weak and he can walk only with the help of a walker. He sometimes becomes obstinate at home. Naveen had been to a government school and also to a school for mentally challenged children at Karnal but did not like either and left. Naveen was a very quiet boy when he joined Pehal about a year and half ago. He would not take interest in any of the activities of Pehal, would sit quietly in a corner and would not even respond to teachers. He always had a sad expression on his face. He would never do any job or homework given to him. One day Mrs Joshi met him and enquired about his welfare. Naveen told her that he did not want to study at all and his name should be struck off the rolls. She sat with him for sometime and lovingly explained to him the benefits of studying, mixing with children and participating in school activities. Other teachers also joined her. Naveen started crying. We deputed an attendant at Pehal to be with him for most of the time to guide and help him. Slowly Naveen got friendly with the attendant and after a few days opened up before him. He told him that he had a poor memory and forgot whatever he would study after a short while. "So much time is wasted by madam (teacher) and you on teaching me yet I can't learn anything". The attendant told him the story of the rope marks on the stone around the well and assured him that his perseverance would pay. He advised him to keep working hard and not despair. Thus Naveen's education started very slowly with the basics of alphabet. With constant practice and a lot of effort both in reading and written work, he learnt the Hindi alphabet in 4 - 5 months. This was followed by the Hindi 'matras', joining of letters and making of words and after that making of sentences. Naveen involved himself fully in this process and a few months further up he could read simple newspapers in Hindi. He also learnt English alphabet from A to Z. His handwriting improved considerably. It appears Naveen suffered from a terrible inferiority complex which grew over a period of time after he left the earlier school. He always thought negatively and regarded himself as worthless. After he joined Pehal some children in his village started teasing him "you have joined a school for mentally insane people and you will also become mentally insane after sometime". Naveen stopped interacting with the village children and one day told this story to the Pehal teacher and started crying. The teacher explained to him what all he had gained at Pehal and the treatment and understanding ( 19 ) he got from everyone around. Naveen said "This school has given me so much. Everyone here loves me, worries about me and teaches me, and enquires about my welfare. No one had given me this kind of treatment either at the government school in the village or at Karnal School". He also said that if for any reason he was made to leave this school he is not going to join another school ever again. The teacher assuaged him and asked him not to worry about what other children told him but concentrate on his studies. As luck would have it, there was a quiz competition among the children of similar schools at Karnal after a few months and Naveen scored first position in the contest. He was given a cash prize and his name was published in the local newspapers. When the village people read the news, they were very happy and congratulated him. Naveen's parents were also delighted. After this incident the village children stopped teasing him Naveen's self esteem and self confidence has now improved tremendously. He does not look upon himself as a weak boy and is willing to compete with anyone.

Neha is 9-year-old pretty looking girl. She has a younger sister and a three year old brother. Neha's father is a teacher in a government school. She is mentally challenged since birth. She also has a problem with her legs and cannot walk properly - she loses her balance and falls down often while walking. The parents have spent a lot of money in her treatment at various places, but without any benefit - and have now given up. It appears Neha had been denied parental love all along, as she would often describe her parents, especially her father, in disparaging terms. She would often say "Papa kutta hai" (My father ia a dog) As informed by her parents, she was very obstinate, would not play with anyone and would keep aloof. She would not like anyone to touch her, and would start crying if anybody did so. She was very disobedient, would like to do things in her own way at her own time. She did not like her sister and brother, and never played with them. It was a difficult job at Pehal to bring Neha round. It could only be done with a lot of love, perseverance and sustained effort. She needed ( 29 ) a lot of pampering, and other children in Pehal were asked specifically to be nice to her. Gradually she started to respond, and now she is as good as any other child at Pehal. She takes part in all the activities including sports, although one has to take care to ensure that she does not get pushed around or injured. She has learnt to recite and write all Hindi vowels. In English, she can recite the entire alphabet, and write up to P, and also counts up to 30. She is very fond of singing songs and rhymes and takes part in group dance and other similar activities. She is also learning to string beads in necklaces and coloring. Her manners have improved considerably - she washes her hands before eating and puts the tiffin on a mat so the food does not spill around. Her obstinacy has gone down considerably and her family members are happy at the progress she is making. She still is bereft of parental love, as is evident by her reaction to any reference to her family.

Poonam was born in April 1999 in a very poor family. Her father is a labourer and often remains sick. Her mother sometimes takes up odd jobs to supplement family income. Due to extreme poverty her father and mother fight often and the overall environment in the family is not good, as a result of which Poonam remains neglected. She had fallen ill during childhood but somehow her illness could not be treated properly as a result of which her brain was affected. She also met with an accident in which one of her arm was broken and during the treatment the bone was wrongly fixed. Poonam has not remained normal since then. She also has a problem with her eyesight which could not be cured She has an older sister and a brother in the family. Poonam was brought to Pehal school during July 2007. She was very forgetful at that time. She would not remember even the location of her own house in the village. She could not speak properly and like other children in the village cleanliness was not a part of her habit. She had improper eating habits. Like other children of her type she was shy, withdrawn and generally uncommunicative. However within a few months Poonam's habits started showing a change. She started observing cleanliness while eating and washed hands carefully before and after the meals. She was taught to fasten the buttons of her dress, which she does now without fail. She is very friendly with other children. She also helps in doing various chores at the school – like cleaning and keeping things in order. She is very disciplined, obeys the teacher fully and does not create any problem during her stay in the school. She cooperates in all school activities. She shares her tiffin with other children and helps them in fetching drinking water, cleaning hands, keeping the shoes in a line and the like. She can recognise almost half of the English alphabet, can count from one to ten, and also makes an attempt to recognise numbers. She also takes part in cultural activities in the class like singing, dancing, and also sports, besides card making, envelopemaking, stringing beads for making necklaces etc and has now become adept at card and necklace making During the New Year gettogether, Poonam offered chairs to all the guests. She has recognition of right and wrong, and once after committing a mistake she apologised to her teacher. She is kind and considerate to the other children of the class, helps them in small day to day things and consoles them if anyone is unhappy or sick She's a very loving and affectionate child. Her forgetfulness has reduced to a large extent and her parents tell us that now she remembers the location of their house in the village. An incident that happened sometime ago is worth mentioning here. Poonam was not feeling well. She had headache and light fever and was lying on a bench and crying. When the other children saw her, they all one by one came to her. One child pressed her head, the other rubbed her feet. Yet another child comforted her telling her not to worry and everything would be okay. It was a touching site seeing the children taking care of the little sick girl. After a while, some medicine was brought from the hospital and given to the girl. She felt better and came back to play with the other children again. All of them felt very happy about it and welcomed her with a roar of laughter and clapping Poonam often misses her eldest sister who was married and had died during childbirth. On one occasion when everyone was talking about his family members, she started crying. Another child, Vishal, consoled her and brought her to the teacher and said "cscs- this is also your sister"- picking up the teacher's hand and raising it. It seems her eldest sister was very attached to her. She sometimes brings her photographs and sometimes her bangles, necklace etc. to school. Poonam has seen a distinct improvement both in her habits and learning during her two year stay at Pehal School. However, she is not equal to a normal child of her age. Despite this, her parents were induced by the local government school teachers to make her join the Government School by offering them the incentives available under a scheme in order to meet their "loZ f'k{kk vfHk;ku" ( "Education For All" Scheme ) targets. She did not get adequate care and attention there, and like another girl Swati who had also left Pehal under similar circumstances, came back to Pehal after a gap of about 7 - 8 months. During this period she had regressed to her old ways and had to ultimately stop going to the government school. On learning about it, Pehal teachers and some local villagers met her parents and persuaded them to send her to this school again. Such children need a protected environment and extra love and care, which is seldom available in a government school.

Puja was born on 3rd November 1998. She has two brothers, one older and the other one younger by three years. Her father is a daily wage earner. He often remains sick. The economic condition of the family is very bad. Puja is mentally challenged since birth. She is somewhat hyperactive also. She could not be given any medical attention due to lack of awareness and the hope that she would improve as she grew older. It was only after she attained the age of five that her parents thought of taking her to a local hospital, but there was absolutely no improvement in her condition. In physical appearance though she is like a normal child, she mixes well with children of her age. She has a weak memory – she cannot remember even the faces of her father and mother As with normal children, her parents sent her to a government school earlier but she could not continue there. She joined Pehal School run at Nagla Megha in September 2007. Like other children at Pehal, her training and education also began by mixing with other children in group activities, learning clean habits, keeping her things properly and good manners. She was thereafter introduced to nursery rhymes and also gradually to Hindi and English alphabets and numbers. She had the habit of coming to the class and leaving it as it pleased her without teacher's permission. Slowly this habit was curbed. She was also asked to keep her teeth clean by explaining that otherwise her teeth would get rotten and she would suffer a lot of pain. She now does that too. Her appearance has also improved as it was insisted that she had a bath daily and wore clean clothes. She is now able to orally recite the entire English alphabet A to Z and numbers from 1 to 100 (although she can not write them all as yet)... All the children at the school including her were also taught to make cards by taking their finger and palm impressions in colour, and make paper flowers. In February 2009, along with other Pehal children Puja's I Q was got checked and it was found to be somewhere around 60 – 70. Somehow her father was thereafter led to believe that she was perfectly normal child and would be adversely affected if she is taught in company of mentally challenged children. He decided to send her to a normal government school under the "Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan" where some financial incentives were also available. She has stopped coming to Pehal School since then. It was learnt that she is not at all doing well at the government school. Her Pehal teacher has since met her parents a few times telling them that she needs a structured programme, and constant attention at school, and may not be able to pull along with other children at the government school but her parents have remained unmoved so far.Efforts are still on to persuade her father to send her ( 24 ) to Pehal alongside the government school.

Raj Kumar is an eight year old handsome looking, happy and mischievous child and looks like any other normal boy. He is mentally challenged since birth. His parents are marginal farmers and also work as casual laborers. He has an older sister (12 yrs) and a brother (4 yrs). His father is a liquor addict, and is barely able to meet the family expenses. Raj Kumar and his sister had joined the village school about five years ago and remained there for almost three years. He faced neglect and ridicule at the school and did not learn anything and later quit the school. At home also his behavior was not acceptable to the family members and he faced a lot of neglect where Raj Kumar joined Pehal he was shy and withdrawn, and did not like staying at the school. He had an unkempt appearance, unhygienic habits and unacceptable social behavior. He was, however, fond of singing and dancing. The teacher at Pehal began with Raj Kumar by trying to be friend him by singing and dancing with him together with other children - an activity he was very fond of. Slowly she won his faith and in about a month's time he started coming closer to her and liking the school. Gradually he started obeying her and she utilized this to impart clean habits to him. Personal hygiene – including washing hands, nail cutting, combing of hair etc was slowly introduced to him and he was also taught not to throw litter around. Simultaneously he was also introduced to Hindi and English alphabets and numbers and colours. The Pehal School at Kaimla was being run in one of the rooms of the village community building. It was not a clean location. Although some teaching aids was provided to the school, yet because of the location itself quite a few problems came in the way. The room was available only when not required by the villagers for any purpose. On such occasions the classes had to be cancelled as there was no alternative available. The people were initially curious and would come to see the school frequently, as a result of which the attention of the children was diverted and they could not concentrate on their daily routine. In course of time the village community became altogether indifferent to the running of this school as these children belonged to very poor families. It was therefore decided to shift these children to Madhuban Police Complex with the consent of their parents. Haryana Police authorities agreed to provide transport to ferry the children and their teacher on a daily basis. The children were very happy and enthusiastic – as this gave them a free joy ride to Madhuban. The shifting was done as 5th May 2008. The progress of this child at Madhuban has been good. His personal hygiene has improved and his social behavior has also shown a significant improvement. He has learnt to paint, and can also make envelopes and necklaces. He ( 23 ) enthusiastically takes part in games and sports activities. His progress in academics is rather slow, he has not yet properly learnt the alphabets and numbers. His concentration span is very short. The one thing that has become noticeable about this child lately is his sense of responsibility. This is proved by an incident, which occurred about six months ago in his village. All the children had boarded the bus in the morning to leave for school and on a head count it was noticed that one boy, Satvir was missing. The teacher was worried and looked around for him but could not locate him. At that point of time she also enquired from the children in the bus whether anyone of them had seen Satvir. Raj Kumar pointed out that he was sitting behind the bus. The teacher went there, found him and brought him inside. This was a pleasing demonstration of the sense of responsibility cultivated by him.

Saloni is 11 year old. She has an abnormally big head and a peculiar gait. She opens her legs too wide while walking. She also has some problems with the eyesight. Saloni comes from a joint family and is the eldest among her siblings. She has a younger brother and sister. Besides her parents, her grandparents also live in the same house. Her father is a farmer with modest income, but is addicted to liquor. He devotes least care to the family. Her mother is educated up to eighth standard. Saloni has received medical attention in various hospitals in Karnal, Panipat and nearby areas but without success. When she joined Pehal, she had unclean looks, was short tempered and would hit and pinch children, sometimes even adults, around her. She would often wet her bed. She had no knowledge of the alphabet and numbers. She knew some Haryanavi songs and would dance enthusiastically to their tunes. She would vigorously shake her head while talking or singing. Within a period of about six months at Pehal, her behavior significantly changed. She started maintaining cleanliness, washing hands before the start of every meal and pointing at other children whenever they did not wash. She learnt English alphabet through songs and could count up to twenty. Her anger level also came down substantially. She got interested in learning painting and singing, participated in all activities and always wanted to take the lead role. She could orally learn and cram up English sentences and could respond to simple questions like "What is your name"? "How are you"? etc. She has become very affectionate with her teacher and fellow children. Saloni's grasping power is good, but she has problem in writing partly because of defect in her eyesight and partly because of improper grip of pencil. Efforts are constantly being made to improve her grip and make her hold the pencil properly. A small incident which occurred after a first few months is worth mentioning here. She was taken by the teacher for eye check up and the doctor asked her to read the alphabets on the board in front. Instead of saying 'A' she said uhpas ls mij, mij ls uhpas chp esa MUaaMk that was the way she was taught to write 'A'. One significant improvement in the behavior of Saloni has been that her habit of bed wetting has been controlled to a great extent as told by her "dadi" (grandmother).She is very attached to her teachers and other children at Pehal. She is fond of talking on phone and wants to talk to anyone who happens to call up the teachers at Pehal. She is very good in activities like singing, dancing, reciting poems acting etc, and tries to play a leading role. She also takes interest in other activities like making of greeting cards, necklaces and envelopes, like other children. Saloni often falls sick and has to go to the hospital, which fortunately is adjacent to school building. Before joining Pehal, she had suffered from some kind of infection in vagina as a result of which she found it difficult to walk properly. She kept her legs wide open and walked with a wide gait. This was treated in course of time, and her style of walking is gradually improving. Her eyesight was also got checked and she was given a pair of glasses, but she lost them after some time. Saloni is a sensitive girl and understands the pain and discomfort of others. Once one of the teachers was unwell and was sitting in her chair in the school. Saloni happened to go to her for some work and noticed her pulled down face. She immediately enquired from her as to why she was looking unwell. The teacher told her the reason and the little girl advised her to take some medicine and rest and not worry about her work and stood by the side of the teacher reassuring her. This gesture on her part moved the teacher- especially considering the fact that this girl herself falls sick frequently. Perhaps her own sufferings and neglect at home have made her sensitive to the discomfort faced by others. She sometimes get jealous when she sees other children being loved but not herself, and then she gets angry and has to be assuaged. She is also deeply conscious of the fact that in academics (which in any case are bare alphabets of both English and Hindi and numbers) she lags behind other children. She however picks up oral lessons fast, and has learnt to answer questions like "what is your name" "how are you" "what is the name of your school etc, and feels proud that she is ahead of all other children in the class in this respect. Salonis' parents remain completely indifferent to her. Although the economic condition of the family is comparatively satisfactory, yet Saloni is not given even proper clothes to wear. She is altogether bereft of parental love - only her grandmother takes care of her. Her parents are so indifferent to her that they refused to even come and watch a cultural programme in which she took an active part and her role was appreciated by one and all. Saloni's father came to School only once during the last two years. The teachers remonstrated with him that he did not love Saloni and never found time for her. The man told the teachers that he loved her the most. Saloni heard it and started crying and told the teachers in front of her father that he did not love her and was telling a lie. Recently the children of Pehal School enacted a dance performance "Tare Zameen par " in a competitive programme for the schools of differently - abled children. It was for the first time that these children had gone out for such a programme. Saloni was the leader of the Pehal group. The children performed very well in the programme and their mannerism (touching the feet of the judges and saying namaste) impressed everyone.

Satvinder was born on 29.4.1997. He has four older sisters. One of the sisters is also mentally challenged. His father is a pensioner, and also runs a private business, and earns enough for the family. Satvinder is mentally challenged since birth. His father had taken him to various doctors but to no avail. He also has a speech problem. Being the only boy child in the family, Satvinder was loved and pampered a lot. He was hyper active and could not be controlled. He use to get angry very quickly and throw things around in the house. He would also quarrel frequently with his sisters and parents. He joined a few schools but could not pull along as he was very naughty and difficult to manage. He could not learn anything in those schools. It appears he was not treated well in these schools as a consequence of which he became reclusive. He was a very shy boy when he joined Pehal School in December 2008. As with other children, Satvinder was also introduced to Pehal through games, plays and other group activities like singing, dancing etc. Slowly he started getting used to Pehal environment and started mixing with children and now his behavior has completely changed. He was also introduced to Hindi and English alphabets and numbers. Satvinder's power to recognize letters and numbers is weak but he has good handwriting and can copy well. He now does not fight with other children and instead tries to help them and also shares his food with others. He never tries to run away from the school, and in case he misses the school bus, insists that his parents drop him at school which they do. His personal behavior and manners have also seen improvement. He greets the visitors with a "namaste", touches the teachers' feet and shakes hand. He also keeps clean and washes his hands before eating his food and throws litter into the litter box. He always completes his homework. A few incidents involving Satvinder deserve mention. Once a girl, Chand Kaur was hitting a boy Prince in anger as he was troubling her. As soon as Satvinder saw it, he ran to Chand Kaur and asked her not to hit him, saying "yeh tera bhai hai" (he is your brother). On another occasion a little boy was crying and the teacher was looking for a piece of biscuit to give him. She asked other teachers if they had any biscuits, but none had. When Satvinder heard this conversation between teachers, he took out two small packets from his school bag and offered it to the teacher. The teacher took out a piece and gave it to the child, but soon thereafter other children also wanted biscuits, so each was given half a biscuit and none was left for Satvinder. Satvinder did not mind it and said he would get biscuits at home.

Swati is a nine year old girl belonging to a very poor and indigent family. Her father is a labourer having meagre income but is addicted to alcohol and a major part of his income is squandered in drinking. Her mother runs a small shop in the village and out of her small earnings the household expenditure is met. Swati had fallen ill during childhood and for want of proper treatment her brain was affected. This, coupled with an unhappy environment in the family, had made her a very reserved and reclusive child. Swati has two sisters and a brother. The frequent quarrels between her mother and father over money and liquor have created a very negative atmosphere in the family. Little attention is paid to this girl. She never goes to her father. When Swati joined Pehal, besides being a loner she also had the habit of pulling her hair. She always had a scared look in her eyes. She would not talk to the children around her and would very often stick her tongue out of her mouth. We started befriending her by holding her hands often, rocking her and giving her friendly body touches. Slowly, she started enjoying group dance with children. During games like "ring a ring of roses", she would especially enjoy when everyone fell down at the end. Her shyness slowly waned. Gradually she started mixing with other children, taking part in group songs and dances and games and also started laughing. She also became a little mischievous like other children of her age and quite shedded the habit of pulling her hair and became very particular about washing hands before meals. She started participating in activities like envelope and card making and stringing beads to make necklaces. She liked to play the role of a teacher and sometimes posed like one with a stick in her hand teaching the class pointing to the board with a stick and saying 'A' for apple and 'B' for ball. She learnt quite a few nursery rhymes. She could also read and write a part of Hindi and English alphabets and some numbers. She recently took part in a small play "mai to so rahi thi" enacted by Pehal children, which was staged on the Annual Day of Haryana Police Public School, Madhuban. She also participated in the sport activities and throughly enjoyed it. Swati suddenly stopped coming to Pehal school in March 2008. It was learnt that she was enrolled in a government school under 'Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan' on promise of some monthly stipend as she belongs to a scheduled caste. She came to Pehal only towards the end of September 2008. During this period she had reverted back to her old habits, would keep crying for no reason and again became aloof, as she was a year ago. It took quite some time and effort on the part of Pehal teachers to bring her back to her old level. She continued for about 4 months and again stopped coming in February 2009. The teachers met her parents a few times to persuade them send her to school regularly but to no avail. They are indifferent to her and by and large have left her to herself. Sometimes she would see the school bus and other children boarding it, and ran to it and came to Pehal. It was learnt that she rarely went to the village school either as no attention was paid to her and they never bothered about her absence. On the whole it was a big tragedy for this child who suffers from all round neglect. Since September, however, she has again started coming to Pehal as the government school in the village has refused to allow her to continue there.