“The marigolds (Chendumalli) we planted have bloomed. You should come for the harvest.”
A total of 21 differently abled individuals from Thalir Buds Rehabilitation Centre in Velure grama panchayat were guests at a face-to-face programme led by District Collector Arjun Pandian, in which students from various parts of the district had the opportunity to interact and present their ideas and issues.
For the Onam season, 180 marigold plants have been grown on 20 cents of land. The Collector was personally invited to attend the harvest. Additionally, the children presented their homemade Naruneendi squash.
During the event, T.S. Vaidehi, who was winner at the State Buds Cultural Festival, performed a folk dance, while Kiran and Sophia entertained the gathering with songs. Kiran also gifted a painting. The group that visited the Collectorate was given the opportunity to visit the Vazhani Dam for free.
Thalir Rehabilitation Centre conducts various activities aimed at the care, self-employment training, and employment rehabilitation of individuals over the age of 18 with intellectual disabilities within the Vellore Grama Panchayat area. The centre provides training in areas such as LED bulb manufacturing, jewellery making, and food production.
The District Collector also instructed the District Medical Officer to take urgent action regarding delay in renewing disability certificates.
All the individuals have employment cards obtained through the Employment Guarantee Scheme. The goal of the Panchayat through the Buds program is the transition of differently-abled individuals from dependency to self-reliance.
Vellore is also the first Grama Panchayat in the country to provide National Trust Legal Guardianship Certificates to all individuals over 18 years of age. The face-to-face programme was attended by Panchayat President P.R. Shobi, Deputy Collector Atul S. Nath, teacher at the centre Anju K. Jayan, PTA President A.J. Jose, Vice President Usha, and staff member Sudha.
