Snehibhavan is a dedicated home for children of Dalit and Tribal origin located in Melukavu, a small town near Kottayam in the southern Indian state of Kerala. Founded in 2000 by Sajini Mathew, a social activist,the home began when she decided to care for a mother and two girls she found abandoned at a bus station. Since then, Snehibhavan has grown to provide shelter to children who have been sexually abused or are at risk, abandoned children, those whose parents cannot support them, and children of non-professional sex workers. The children live with Sajini and her husband Mathew and attend local schools.

Snehibhavan is a safe haven primarily for tribal and Dalit girls from the Kottayam district. Many of the residents are the children of unwed mothers from nearby colonies in the Idukki District who have been abandoned or found in vulnerable situations. Snehibhavan aims to protect, care for, educate, and empower these girls to prepare them for their futures. The director, Sajini, and her husband Mathew, are Dalit activists committed to promoting education and cultural awareness while advocating for the rights of Dalit and tribal women and children in their region.

Snehibhavan Activities

Snehibhavan is now functioning under Juvenile Justice and Orphanage Control Board. A brief report of the activities that have done by Snehibhavan is as follows.

Counselling and Mentoring

Our counseling program is reinforced by visits from experts in the field, including the Pink Police and our in-house counselors. We also provide specialized classes to support their mental health and wellness.

Occupational training.

The major suggestion put forward is that the children who showed a lack of interest in studies but are talented in various skills and crafts should be provided with the facilities by which they can specialise themselves in those fields. Snehibhavan also intends to buy instruments such as sewing machines for interested children. Occupational Training for children has been given on spinning and embroidery works and fabric painting from time to time.

Formal Education

It is a fact that education is the only way to challenge vulnerable life situations of children and at Snehibhavan we are convinced of it. Therefore we have given special care in the children's educational matters. The girls are getting educated in IHRD Technical School in muttom.

Visit to Schools

A team of Snehibhavan activists visits the schools time to time, where the children are getting educated. They meet the teachers and the headmasters in order to get the feedback about the children.We are also participating the parent - Teacher meetings regularly.

Language Training

As children are not fluent in reading and writing of Malayalam and English we have been concentrating on developing their language skills in both these languages. We had numerous sessions for this every year under the leadership of various students from universities, and other higher educational institutions

Celebration of Special Days

Celebrations of special occasions, events, feasts etc have been organised in the Home from time to time. It seemed to be effective in releasing tensions and stress of children. Onam, Christmas, New Year etc are the festivals generally celebrated. Some of our friends, officials from Panchayath, members of advisory board ete have joined with the functions.

Birthday Celebrations

The Birthdays of all children in Snchibhavan are celebrated regularly as it is an important occasion in the personal life as the children are to be emotionally supported and cared. The functions are accompanied by speFinancial Assistance to Needy Children: We provide financial support to 18 Dalit and economically backward children from Kottayam, Idukki, and Thrissur districts, enabling them to pursue various courses ranging from 6 months to 5 years in duration." cial food and the wishes and presents of the immediate friends of the children and Snehibhavan. The Birth day of all children are celebrated in the same manner.

Vegetable and Flower Garden

Snehibhavan is looking for self-sustainment in regard with water and vegetables for daily purpose. Our rain water harvesting is still continuing successfully though day by day the water level in this region is depleting

Field Trips

Every year the Snehibhavan team goes for a trip mostly during vacation. The Snehibhavan fraternity had a memorable tour to Cochin, the commercial capital of Keral.

OTHER ACTIVITIES

Self employment Units -Tailoring

The Center has established three self-employment units for women in Cheenikkuzhy, Muttam, Maniyarankudy, and Adimali. Through these units, women receive training and find out their source of income.

Legal support. troubles in cases when their husband' starts to live with another partner and send the women back to their own houses. We have provided legal support to women who are involved in such cases from time to time. Three notable cases have been settled in favour of women by the intervention of the Centre's legal support team. By this the women regained their house and land that they had lost.

Counselling

Women and children who are facing domestic abuse and domestic disputes approach us in order to find a solution to their problems. In such cases we arrange counselling session at the centre, in order to improve their family relations.

Temporary shelter

Women who are in need of temporary shelter, mostly abandoned by theit family or in-laws, are given food and shelter for few days and we support their legal fight for justice. Five women with their children have benefitted from this facility.

Awareness Classes on Women issues

The organization hosts seminars, conferences, and workshops with the objective of empowering women through awareness and education on various social and individual issues affecting their lives.

Marriages

After 18 years, we are now facilitating marriages for some of our candidates. Currently, our organization is arranging marriages for four young women."

Study material Distribution

We distributed approximately 1,500 study material kits to students in our Panchayat and neighboring district schools. Each kit comprises a bag, notebooks, a tiffin box, pen, umbrella, and various other necessary supplies."

Vaccation camp

Every year, 30 students and our children participate in a vacation training program. This annual program spans three days and features a range of activities, including drama, cinema, folk songs and art camps

Financial support for Education

We provide financial support to 18 Dalit and economically backward children from Kottayam, Idukki, and Thrissur districts, enabling them to pursue various courses ranging from 6 months to 5 years in duration."

Flood 2018 - 2019

Responding to the urgent needs of those affected by the flood, we intervened promptly to provide essential supplies, including clothing, food, medicines, and household items. As part of our rehabilitation efforts, we constructed and handed over 50 new houses to families in Thrissur, Ernakulam, and Idukki districts.

Furthermore, we established six water treatment plants in the Kuttanadan area, where access to fresh water is limited. This initiative has brought clean drinking water to approximately 500 families, significantly improving their health and well-being.

Covid-19 Relief Efforts:

As voluntary workers in our Panchayath, we played a vital role in supporting our community during the pandemic. Our initiatives included:

• - Delivering food and medicine to bedridden patients, ensuring they received essential supplies.
• - Providing food assistance to individuals struggling to purchase necessities due to lockdown restrictions or financial constraints.
• - Offering round-the-clock transportation services to patients in need, utilizing our vehicle and dedicated team to ensure uninterrupted support.