A well-equipped rehabilitation programme is underway in Sambalpur city of Odisha to give beggars, transgenders, drug addicts, destitute, and the homeless a life of dignity. This initiative is a part of the project to make Sambalpur a beggar-free city. Under the project, an Integrated Infrastructure Complex (IIC) for rehabilitation has been inaugurated and 47 homeless persons and beggars have been shifted so far to the112-room facility.
Indian Masterminds interacted with DM of Sambhalpur, Dibya Jyoti Parida, IAS, to know more about this initiative.
IIC COMPLEX
Mr. Parida said that the IIC complex was built with funds from the social security department. It was built keeping in mind the problems faced by the poor and needy people on the ground. NGOs and all other people working for the socially vulnerable were included in the project to ensure greater public participation.
ICC complexes are Odisha Government’s pet project that aims to be a centre of excellence that will include old age home, home for destitute, physiotherapist centre, medical unit, rehabilitation centre and special schools for visually impaired, hearing impaired and intellectual disability. Odisha Cabinet recently approved a proposal to construct Integrated Infrastructure Complex (IIC) in all the 30 districts of the state in a phased manner.
OBJECTIVE
Mr. Parida said, “The main purpose of this integrated infrastructure complex is to do all kinds of developmental activities for our socially vulnerable groups. This includes health checkups, rehabilitation,job-oriented training like welding, sewing, etc. Along with this, we also provide psychological assistance. This is being done so that people can leave begging and start other work. Many of them have been rehabilitated and efforts are on for the rest.”
The three-storey complex has been developed on a 19.77-acre land at Baijamunda on the city’s outskirts at a cost of Rs 25.43 crore by the Odisha Industrial Infrastructure Development Corporation (IDCO).
BEGGAR FREE CITY
Mr. Parida further said, “We are currently taking many different initiatives to make Sambalpur a beggar-free city, because according to our survey, there are about 450 beggars in the city. We will bring all these people here and give them skilled training,so that they can move towards a better living and can leave the work of begging. We will help them get loans from banks along with other kind of assistance to enable them to live a life of dignity.”
He informed that employees of the social welfare department bring the beggars to the IIC complex. They first conduct a survey on the ground, then pick them up on special vehicles that have been commissioned for this purpose and bring them to the complex. Once, they are in the complex, the rehabilitation process starts, and they are slowly introduced to a life of dignity. Counsellors work on their self-esteem and self-confidence so that when they leave the complex and go out into the world, they stick to a dignified way of living.
