By Chetna Choudhary, Ahmedabad Mirror | Nov 21, 2014, 02.00 AM IST
Nimesh, 14, lost his mother when he was a young child. Later, his father remarried and migrated to another city to work as a daily wage labourer, leaving his son in the care of Sarvodaya Lok Sewa Trust, an orphanage in Vatva.
» Six-year-old Sanjay and his parents would roam the streets and sleep on footpaths. This went on till officials from Child Welfare Committee found him lying next to a gutter and brought him to Bal Gruh eight months ago.
» Orphan Kushal, 12, was handed over to a children's home by his maternal uncle who said he was unable to look after his sister's son.
» When 5-year-old Renukaa lost her mother and her father became critically ill, her relatives including paternal uncles, aunts and father's sister left her at Shreyas Foundation's Bal Gruh Vibhag in Ambawad
These are some of the 100 children aged between 6 and 18 who have no place to call home except the orphanages they live in. Many of them have no details of their identity - be it a birth certificate, name of a family member or a proper residential address. In an effort to give orphaned, lost or deserted kids an identity, the government is issuing Aadhaar cards to them. The government will also include 40 children who live with their relatives in the city who avail the benefits of the foster care scheme. On Thursday, 48 kids were registered for the card at a camp organized at Kiran Observation Home in Khanpur by the District Child Protection Unit in Ahmedabad.
The camp has been extended for another day to register 45 children. The authorities will also hold a camp at an orphanage to register 52 more kids. "Orphans are often unable to get Aadhaar cards made, which makes it difficult for them to procure other essential documents in future. Once they turn 18 years old, these children will go to higher institutes, look for jobs and may also migrate out of city. To be independent, they need an identity which an Aadhaar card can provide. The card will work as an identity proof for them their entire lives. It will give them an identity and a background," said Divyakant Parmar, DCPU Protection Officer (non-institutional care).
Conditions have been relaxed for the orphans as they will not be able to furnish documents as proof of age and address - — essential for making the Aadhaar cards. The children stay at Shishu Gruh till they are five years old. They are then shift to Bal Gruh till they are adults. After which they get a grant of Rs 10,000 from government before they turn 21 as a part of aftercare programme. Having Aadhaar cards will help these children in the long run to get driving licence, voter's identity card and ration card. "They will be also able to open a bank account. Whatever financial help/grant they get from the government can be deposited in this account," said Tushar Patel, an Aadhar card operator at the venue.