26th August 2016; Thane: 15years years back, the city of Thane grieved the loss of its gem and favorite leader Dharmaveer Anand Dighe in an unfortunate incident. The citizens of Thane came together on the eve of his death anniversary on 26th August to organize a seminar for the parents of intellectually challenged children. The seminar was organized under the able leadership of Shri Kedar Dighe, President of Dharmaveer Anand Dighe Yuva Pratishthan along with Vishwas Charitable Trust and Jagruti Palak Sanstha.
Jagruti Palak Sanstha has over 300 parents as members who come together to find solutions for making life easier for them and their children with intellectual disability. The seminar was organized in presence Shri Kedar Dighe, Dr. Shubha Thatte, Dr. Meena Shiledar, Mrs. Shamashree Bhonsle, Shri. Arvind Sule of Vishwas Charitable Trust which is one of the oldest organization in Thane working for intellectually challenged kids. “My uncle, Dharmaveer Anand Dighe Saheb was instrumental in hearing and solving problems of the people in Thane. Though we have lost him, I along with other members of Dharmaveer Anand Dighe Yuva Pratisthan are committed to keep his legacy alive and keep working selflessly for the people of Thane. In his remembrance, we recently distributed notebooks to underprivileged kids and today we are here with eminent doctors to help the parents of intellectually challenged kids and their parents”, says Shri Kedar Dighe, President, Dharmaveer Anand Dighe Yuva Pratishthan. “We are also proposing an activity centre to be built for these kids and will be writing to the Government and the Commissioner of Thane” adds Shri Kedar Dighe.
From L-R Mrs. Shamashree Bhonsle, Dr. Shubha Thatte, Shri Kedar Dighe, Dr. Meena Shiledar and Shri. Arvind Sule
Notebook Distribution
A mentally challenged person is also called PWIDD-Person With Intellectual and Developmental Disability. There are innumerable difficulties in bringing up and supporting such a child. Bringing up a mentally deficient child is a big challenge for any parent, more so if he or she belongs to the financially weaker section of the society and is a daily wage earner. Some of them may even be single parents. Though these kids grow up physically, they are not capable of taking care of themselves due to their mental handicap. This puts the parents to extreme stress leading to frustration and even suicide. Individually, parents face insurmountable odds. “There are many things families can do to help children with psychological disorders. The isolated child with a disorder, who has some interest or talent, may be helped by taking part in a special class or art camp,” says Dr. Shubha Thatte.
“We’ve seen parents do some amazing things with children who are mentally disabled––very moving examples of children who, because of their parents’ efforts, were able to take part in mainstream education and other fields,” adds Dr. Meena Shiledar. “We need more and more such seminars to be organized to make Thane a better place to live.”
Dharmaveer Anand Dighe Yuva Pratishthan was established in the year 2006 and has since then been involved in number of activities focused towards the social and economic development of the people of Thane. The NGO is led by Shri Kedar Dighe, who is truly a new age leader and understands the problems of people to provide holistic solutions.