Integrating into life8217;s ways

The culmination of all that was an understanding that has served to benefit other handicapped persons too. Employing them to do hand jobs at his industrial unit where locks are assembled for doors and automobiles, Chuttar and his team, including 17 mentally disabled persons, have reason to feel a sense of accomplishment.

The first question that comes to mind during talk of employing mentally retarded individuals is 8220;can they work?8221; But this query finds no space in Chuttar8217;s thinking. In his opinion, all they need is a chance to prove that they, too, are efficient at a job that is in tune with the severity of their handicap.

8220;Almost every enterprise has opportunity for some kind of hand work. If that job does not require any skills or original thinking; if it8217;s a repetitive kind of function that practice can master, why not employ such people?8221; is his question.

Answering that himself, he has employed such individuals at his factory, Sharayu Precision and Associated Manufacturing Company, in the M.I.D.C. premises. Beginning with one Suryakant Yadav, almost 12 years ago, the number has increased to 17 today. Doing jobs of drilling, tapping, lock assembly that includes parts like screws, springs, backplates, spindles. Chuttar8217;s doors are open to anybody; he does not even check their background or I.Q. levels to determine the extent of retardation.

8220;My personal experience made me address this issue. All through Ajay8217;s growing years he is 20 now, I grew to understand that these children are lonely. Their sense of achievement is nil and desperately needs bolstering,8221; Chuttar says with conviction.

That is when he decided to create employment at his factory. 8220;I told my workers to be on a lookout and they spotted Suryakant.8221; Convincing the family to send him to the factory, his idea got a concrete shape. Chuttar now also has physically disabled persons working with him.

8220;It8217;s generally believed that mentally retarded persons are slow and inefficient. But my experience has shown otherwise. Yes, you have to be patient, because they take time to figure out instructions. But once they learn, they follow. With time, that initial fear and timidity also disappears.8221;

As it happened with Archana Khadke. A premature baby, she had no strength in her limbs. She could not lift even a bit of weight, but today, four months later, she wields a hammer and is eager to work on a compress machine! 8220;Today, I eat three chappatis,8221; she says with a laugh, her increased appetite indicating her happy frame of mind.

And the security they find here is evident by their refusal to go home, even when they fall ill. 8220;If they are unwell, and we offer to take them home, they refuse the offer,8221; says supervisor D.N. Bhangre. That is because most of them find no support at their homes, and are emotionally attached to their employers and co-workers.

This faith is not without reason. Having faced irritation, lack of understanding and apathy early in their lives, the simple gesture of a smile or a pat means the world to them. 8220;All this is possible only because my partners and other workers are so concerned for them. They have never complained or raised their voice at them. Any sign of illness, any change in mood and they are quick to attend to them,8221; says Chuttar.

8220;Yes, we need to be patient and alert, but we8217;ve never had a rough time,8221; says Ganpatbhau Shinde, another supervisor, a rehabilitated petty criminal himself.

Be it Ashok Sohoni, Suyab Gadre with one non-functional hand, Nilesh Bhagat, Prashant Mandavkar, Mauli or Ganesh Kanpile, each has found a place for himself at Chuttar8217;s. Some even have independent bank accounts, and all have some part of their salary invested in the post savings or fixed deposits by the company in their name.

8220;They are so vulnerable that they can be easily cheated. We need to ensure that tomorrow if they have no job or are shunned by their family, they can pull through,8221; explains Chuttar. Speaking from experiences like those of an employee named Waikar, who despite being mentally retarded is the only earning member of his normal family, Chuttar says the investment is essential.

An opinion echoed by Pratima Awasthee, an instructor at Kamayani, Nigdi, a special school for the mentally handicapped, and some of whose students are employed here. 8220;Chuttar and his workers have almost become their surrogate parents, inculcating a confidence in them. Growing up, they often withdraw into a shell. If ridicule comes their way, it8217;s devastating. The salary makes them feel proud. We need such places to help our students enter the normal flow of life,8221; she says.

While the normal workers have faced no problems, they do admit that they have to be sensitive. They cannot lose their patience and yell at them if they go wrong. At the same time, they cannot totally pamper them. Essentially, their moods have to be handled right. 8220;As with Bhagat with Down8217;s Syndrome,8221; says Bhangare. Every morning, he needs to sit on a swivel chair in Chuttar8217;s office for a couple of minutes. No conversation, nothing. Just sit there for a while and then get back to work. But if he cannot, he gets restless. 8220;We understand that,8221; adds Chuttar.

Understanding, concern, support 8211; yes, they get it all here. And while Chuttar has welcomed any such handicapped person, be he from a school or the streets, he feels he can offer only a temporary arrangement. 8220;This is probably their first experience of integrated working. But we have our limitations, and cannot employ too many such persons. But having been trained into an integrated system, they can be employed by other companies and we, in turn, can take on new persons. There is some job in every work place where they can be accommodated. Unfortunately, nobody realises that.8221;

That is Chuttar8217;s primary concern now. He is even ready to arrange for people from other firms to visit his employees and recruit somebody. But that is not happening right now. Undeterred, he continues. To take in as many people as he can, do his bit and make a difference.