February 26th, 2020 : It’s been 21 years that Mata Bhagwanti Chadha Niketan (MBCN), one of India’s largest school for specially-abled, has been enabling the ‘children with special needs’. To commemorate the achievement, the school celebrated its 21st Annual Day today. MBCN works under the aegis of The Ponty Chadha Foundation that works towards the social and economic development of the society.
On this momentous occasion and in the august presence of Guest of Honour Dr. Nimesh G. Desai Director Institute of Human Behavior and Allied Sciences (IHBAS), Delhi and Shri Som Prakash, Union Minister of State Commerce and Industry, GOI, Ex I.A.S Punjab, MP from Hoshiarpur Lok Sabha BJP, the school also launched the iOS version of Vaakya, a picture based AAC (augmentative and alternate communication) mobile app designed for people who are speech impaired, and/or affected by autism, cerebral palsy and various other mental and physical conditions. The app can be customised by the user according to their special needs and doesn’t rely on internet connectivity. Multiple user accounts can be created by adding multiple students/patients to the application with unique actions and speech specifications as per individual users. The speech associated with actions can be recorded and played back in any language, providing greater flexibility. It is available on Google Play Store for free of cost.
To reach the wider audience and relevant users, the school organized orientation programs for various developmental centres and exhibitions globally like NIEMD (National Institute For Empowerment Of Persons With Multiple Disabilities)-Chennai, Ananth Centre For Learning And Development-Delhi, INSAR (International Society for Autism Research )CANADA.
Talking about the annual day Mr. Manpreet Singh Chadha, Chairman, Wave Group said, “It gives me immense pleasure in launching the iOS version of VAAKYA, our initiative will reach more people and it will help the specially-abled in communicating efficiently. This picture based mobile app aids the people who are speech impaired, affected by autism, cerebral palsy and various other mental and physical conditions. We believe that our recent initiatives will give an impetus to our on-going efforts in bringing vital changes to the lives of hundreds of specially-abled children. It is our endeavour that with each initiative we move closer to Shri Gurdeep Singh Chadha’s vision of creating an environment where people with special needs could become socially and economically independent.
The school also launched ‘Department of Behavioural Sciences’ to address the intellectual disabilities affecting individual’s functioning in everyday life. Intellectual disability is the impairment of general mental abilities which affects an individual’s functioning in everyday life posing a high risk of Psychiatric disorders, prevalence is as high as 40.9% based on clinical diagnosis, most common are the behavioural problems, followed by mood disorders, Anxiety & Psychosis. Realizing the alarming need to address these issues, the school is now introducing department of Behavioral Sciences headed by a Mental Health Professional
Speaking on the occasion, Ms. Vandana Sharma Director & Principal, Mata Bhagwanti Chadha Niketan said “We strive hard each day to empower and make our students independent. As we celebrate 21 wonderful years of this great institution, we have undertaken some very innovative methods to bring the specially-abled children into the mainstream. With VAAKYA and the launch of the ‘department of behavioural sciences’, we aim to further bring assistance in the lives of the specially-abled. We will continue to channelize our efforts towards empowering them.”
With dance performances and other programmes highlighting the theme – ‘‘Har Rang Kuch Kehta Hai’, the students enthralled the parents and guests. The school felicitated the teachers for their contributions and students’ for their achievements in various national & International competitions and sports tournaments.
The Ponty Chadha Foundation
The Ponty Chadha Foundation was set-up in the memory of Late Chairman Mr. Gurdeep Singh Chadha of the WAVE Group, led by his wife Mrs. Jatinder Kaur Chadha, to work for the general welfare of the society. The Foundation aims to channelize its capabilities towards social and economic development of the society at large and help the underprivileged and weaker sections of the society.
The Ponty Chadha Foundation keeps community service in the forefront and is committed to work for alleviating the common social challenges faced by the poor and the otherwise neglected sections. The CSR activities currently address hunger and food security, community health, education and training, sports among children and propose to impart skills training for rural and urban disadvantaged youth.
The foundation also runs Mata Bhagwanti Chadha Niketan (MBCN), with a vision to enable the specially-abled children. The school is one of the largest charitable institution in India, providing free of cost rehabilitation services to over 500 beneficiaries with different disabilities. Recognising the efforts, the school has been conferred with National Award 2018 for ‘Best Institution working for Cause of Persons with Disabilities’. In addition to this, PCF also undertakes preventive and curative primary health care services for communities in the villages in and around Wave City, Ghaziabad.
