Moneylife: Pune: Thursday, September 11, 2014.
The land is situated next to 'elite' Poona Club
Golf Course. The government will appoint an administrator and begin sending
children to other homes.
The trustees and the director of the Save Our Soul
(SOS) Children’s Village (SOS Balgram) in Pune have yet to receive any official
directive of its closure from the Maharashtra government. However, when former
children of the orphanage, invoked Right to Information (RTI) Act and procured
a recently written letter by a section officer of women and welfare department,
they were in a rude shock. The letter directs Commissioner Rajendra Chavan to
begin proceedings to close Pune's SOS Balgram, which houses over 160 children of various ages between 5 and 18 years, shift them to other
remand homes, and most curiously, explore the possibility of reclaiming the
land back to the department.
In a letter issued on 22nd August, which was procured
under RTI, a few days back, the signatory who is not even the chief of the
department, has ordered the Commissioner, Women and Child Welfare department to
appoint an administrator and that, under no condition, should the custody of
children be given to the present trustees of SOS Balgram.
The SOS Balgram controversy, which was at its peak
in latter half of 2013, was because of the state government’s unusual stance of
closing the unique orphanage, which runs in a family-like fashion, with
'mothers' staying with 9 or 10 children in each of the cottages, spread over
nine acres. The elite Poona Club Golf Course shares a common boundary wall with
this orphanage, leading to the suspicion that it was vested interest at the
highest level that is interested in usurping the prime land. Moneylife had run
a series of articles on this issue. The reason given by the minister of women
and child welfare, Varsha Gaikwad were two incidents, one of molestation and
another of a death of a nine-year-old orphan that merited closure of the
orphanage. However, the trustees had asked for one more chance while contesting
the incidents, as the SOS Balgram maintained an impeccable record for the last
36 years of its existence.
After a hunger strike and a sustained campaign by
the former students of the SOS Balgram and media outrage, which included a
series of articles in Moneylife, there had been a lull for eight months, with
the trustees being allowed to run the orphanage, with assurances that the
children would not be moved out.
However, suddenly tables seem to have turned.
Deputy Commissioner of women and child welfare department, Rahul More admitted
that, “the state government has asked us to take immediate action on its
directives issued in the 22nd August letter, I am on tour and it requires the
Commissioner’s approval before the process begins.” He also admitted that the
department has been asked to explore the possibility of reclaiming the land.
Very strangely, the 30-year lease of the SOS
Balgram land expired in 2006 but according to insiders renewal of the lease was
'deliberately' being postponed, time and again. They were asked to pay the
annual rent of Rs8,500 per year, directly to the revenue department. Since the
last two years, at least eight reminders have been sent to the revenue
department for renewal of lease, but there have been no replies to the letters,
says a reliable source. Now, in an official letter, the women and child welfare
department has been asked to reclaim land, at the earliest.
Very clearly, this move is suspicious. Ashok
Ghadge, director of SOS Balgram, says, “I am surprised at the hasty move to
close the Balgram. We have already spent near to half a crore on the children
after the commissioner in February and August revoked the order to move the
children out. The women and child welfare department has already ordered the
child committee to begin the process of sending children to other homes. No
reasoning has been given as to why they have taken this action suddenly. They
have not asked for any report of the performance in the last eight months. This
letter belies any logic and reasoning and legal standing.’’
The Bombay High Court too had directed the women
and welfare department to look into the issue, which had encouraged the
trustees and administration to believe that the license would be revoked.
Thereafter, Gaikwad had called for a meeting and it seemed the story would
amiably end. (Read: Pune's SOS Balgram to be given a second chance?)
Ghadge has
issued a letter to women and child welfare ministry, requesting that the SOS
Balgram authorities be given an opportunity to put forward their side of the
issue and give an explanation for this knee jerk action.’’ However, it seems,
this time, the state government is firm on driving out a social home for the
sake of alleged high society needs.
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