Amar Seva Sangam (ASSA), founded in 1981 (the "Year for the Disabled"), is a highly reputed and totally committed registered charity in India, run by the disabled for the disabled. ASSA was envisioned, created and successfully run by two visionaries, the president Mr.Ramakrishnan, a quadriplegic with total paralysis from neck down and the dynamic architect and the secretary cum master mind of the organization Mr.Sankara Raman C.A, confined to a wheel chair with Muscular Dystrophy. Both render honorary services to ASSA.

Inside this elegant entrance, there is a whole new world. ASSA is situated at the foothills of a small mountain range, at the outskirts of a village called Ayikudy, in the state of Tamil Nadu in South India. ASSA now owns the 30 acre land where several buildings have propped up. The land was bought over a 12 year period, the money coming from private donations. With plenty of clean air to breathe, good spring water to drink , lots of Home grown vegetables to eat and a beautiful flower garden to inspire, not to mention the loving care the children receive, it is no wonder that the disabled children who come in as emaciated, neglected and spiritless individuals are totally transformed in a matter of months to happy, playful, spirited children who are so self confident that they are now walking, studying in a school and being taken care of medically and emotionally.

ASSA facilities include a school, vocational training, and a rehabilitation centre. Additionally, ASSA focuses on community based rehabilitation and rural development. Trained counselors counsel the people of the community and an infrastructure is in place to educate & motivate the villagers on various aspects of improving their economic situation as well as to provide education on prevention and care of disabling diseases. The rehabilitation would be incomplete without the successful implementation of programs in all the above 6 areas. ASSA has proved itself by succeeding in their endeavor and continuing to do so.

Rehab of poor rural Spinal Cord Injured.

• Extension 1: In & out patient services for 500 or more persons with disabilities.
• Extension 2 : Callipers & Prosthetic Aids for in & out patients
• Extension 2: Outreach & Village based rehabilitation services, reaching over 15,000 persons with disability issues.
• Extension 3: Prevention and Early Detection
• Extension 4: Physiotherapy Center and Hostel
• Extension 5 : 90 Self help groups formed

Vocational Training for the disabled resulting in employment.

The Govt. of Japan

ICICI, India

The Home shelters around 100 disabled children spilt into 3 categories: Home Care (Those who live in the Home), Day Care (those transported from their Homes to ASSA on a daily basis, attending the school and receiving all other rehab. benefits) and Outreach - Village Based Rehabilitation Programs (VBR).   The live-in children are severely disabled and require more care.  They are given all the medical care needed, receive three healthy meals a day, given physiotherapy and exercises twice a day, attend the School and will be given Vocational Training when they finish High school. The Day Care children receive all the care that the live-in children do except for living in their respective Homes.  They are less severely disabled and are bussed to ASSA every morning and dropped back at night. The VBR children may or may not attend the ASSA School, yet benefit from all the programs offered including medical care.

Handi-Care Intl. has invested significantly in building schooling facilities for the rural children with the emphasis on building for the disabled. HCI donated significantly to the main school building at Amar Seva Sangam (ASSA) facility from 1992 to 1995.  In 1999 HCI played a major role in acquiring a handsome grant from Indian Overseas Bank, Chennai to build the elementary school, which was being held at a thatched hut in the village.  Below is a synopsis on the ASSA School project.

The School,  housed in a thatched shed had only five children, was shifted to a proper building located within the ASSA campus and was accorded recognition by the Tamil Nadu State Government in the year 1991. It has become a well reputed middle school with standards I to VIII. The total strength as on date is over 350 and the school is open to the community. Fifty of the students who are disabled are also under the "Home Care" program. Fourteen fully qualified teachers offer high quality education.

Qualified personnel impart craft and physical education.  Mass drill and march-past form an important aspect of physical education.  The pupils have participated and won several prizes at the state level competitions in debate, elocution, sports, music and cultural competitions conducted under the auspices of various organizations. The disabled pupils residing at ASSA get not only quality education, but the opportunity to interact and compete with their normal healthy classmates and hence develop their social habits in a constructive manner. The goal is to integrate the Handicapped with the society and make them independent in every possible way. For more on this facility and current stats visit : www.amarseva.org and follow the links to ..>activities ..> institutional care ..> Integrated middle school.

VTC has 6 different training facilities ((Computer Centre, Typing Centre, Two Wheeler Mechanic- Training Centre, Note Book Making & Binding Centres, Caliper Workshop Training Centre, Spirulina Centre : Production & Marketing of high quality Spirulina) . Buildings and equipment were funded by the Nippon grant and grants from IDBI and ICICI.  As the names indicate, each sub-centre offers training in specific areas, free of charge to the disabled youth in order to equip them with job skills.  These centres are open to normal and paying students as well. The fee collected is utilized for maintenance and development.

The Computer Centre comprises a total of 316 youth who have received "Computer Training" – 40 of which were disabled. As well, 14 disabled and 40 non-disabled youth have received training in typewriting. ASSA also makes and repairs the calipers used by the disabled children providing vocational training and job opportunities in the process. .  They are able to cut the cost by more than 50% than if they were to order from outside sources. Similar achievements have been made in the other divisions.

Spirulina is an algae grown naturally in the ocean beds.  It is very rich in proteins, vitamins, minerals and other rare elements.  It is used as a nutritional supplement in pharmaceutical preparations and cosmetics in Europe and North America. ASSA has built the facility to cultivate this algae in vats.  The purified Spirulina is given to the disabled as a supplement.  The rest is marketed abroad.  This makes the project self funding, while providing jobs and training to the local destitute.

The Rehabilitation  Center, which operates in tandem with the Home, is headed by a physiatrist who assesses and recommends the course of treatment.  The center is also open to all who can not afford to pay the fee to regular clinics.  The center has successfully rehabilitated several children from Stage I (those who come in crawling with wasted limbs) to Stage II (completion of corrective surgery, walking with fitted Calipers, aided by crutches) to Stage III (Integration with the community). This center has 5 extensions as detailed later. 

Extension 1 - Prosthetic Aids: ASSA has several hundred beneficiaries that have received prosthetic aids that are manufactured and maintained at their facility "G. Fisher Caliper Making Unit", that runs under the "Vocational Training" umbrella. Calipers, Crutches and other orthopedic aids are manufactured using the modern plastic molding technology and given free of charge to needy disabled persons. In 1998 more than 3000 calipers and prosthetic aids were manufactured and maintained by ASSA.

Extension 2 - Community Rehabilitation Program: ASSA has launched a "Community Rehabilitation Program," through which over 1000 individuals have benefited. Please Visit  http://www.amarseva.org/  and follow links to activities for current stats and activities.

Extension 3 - Prevention and Early Detection: Prevention, Early Detection and Early Intervention Program:  This Program is jointly run with Spastic Society of Tamil Nadu Chennai. Doctors, village health nurses, and dieticians are involved in executing the program. ASSA has targeted a disability free district in the next 3 years. This Program is aided by the Govt. of Australia. The efforts taken by ASSA in prevention of Polio since 1985 and by the state through "Polio Plus" program since 1995 have been very successful. There has not been a single Polio case in the past 2 years in the area serviced by ASSA.

Extension 4 - Physiotherapy Center and  Hostel: The Physiotherapy Centre and hostel for the disabled was constructed with the Govt. of Japan grant and is equipped by the grant from Rotary Intl. The facility is in extensive use by the disabled children living in the Home, on outreach and daycare programs. The facility is also open to anyone in need of therapy. The center is headed by a qualified Physiatrist and doctor.

Extension 5 - Spastic Center: A day care center for Spastics Children was opened in September 1998. Twelve children are undergoing training. At least one parent is involved for every child for the rehabilitation program.

Please click here for additional Rehabilitation Centre statistics.