By Nayak Paudel

“We cannot make your children see or hear but we can make them capable as other children,” is what a picture hanged in one of the concrete pillars inside the enabling center of Hospital for Children Eye ENT and Rehabilitation Service says. As said in words, it is what the enabling center has been doing for the past seven years.
Started in 2013 under the aegis of B.P. Eye Foundation, an NGO working for the eye health of Nepalis, the enabling center of Hospital for Children Eye ENT and Rehabilitation Service (CHEERS), located at Madhyapur Thimi in Bhaktapur, has enrolled a total of 328 children till date. 
Among the children were the ones who were either visually impaired (VI) or were suffering from hearing impairment (HI).
Along with VI and HI children, the center enrolls children with low vision and children who are visually impaired with multiple disabilities (VIMD). 
With a capacity of keeping 30 children in its hostel at a time, the center has been providing day-scholar services as well.
Recently, the center has 13 children – 6 VI, one HI, four VIMD and one with low vision – in its 30th batch. In a gap of every couple of months, the center graduates children who learnt well and became able to do the things taught. On February 13, the center had graduated 10 children.
The center’s data shows that a total of 224 children out of 328 successfully graduated and are currently studying at different inclusive schools.
According to the center, most of the children enrolled had suffered from respective disabilities since their birth and their disabilities were barely curable.
“A child is born with disability due to various reasons including genetic disorder, birth defects, premature birth and complications while in the womb. In the enabling center, we make them capable like normal children despite their disabilities,” said Dr Sanjib Kumar Upadhyay, executive director of CHEERS. 
Every day, the children at the center wake up at 6 am and start their day to day activities. Once fresh, the children perform surya namaskar, a sequence of 12 yoga poses, and have their breakfast. They are then trained and taught by their trainers and provided with playing times in between.
The children who graduated from the enabling center and later joined school for specialised children were found to be brilliant than others. 
“Teachers from various special schools call us and say that the children who graduated from the enabling center were disciplined, bright and attentive,” said Prashikshya Bhattarai, psychosocial counselor at the center.
According to Bhattarai, disability does not limit anyone’s capability and they are equally capable as others are.
“I am a human being first and a citizen of the country comes second. Disability comes later. It should neither be the tag of my recognition nor any other with disability,” Bhattarai, who is visually impaired herself, told the TRN.
The trainers enjoy the time with children. For them, the children do not seem to have any form of disabilities and they enjoy teaching the children.
“A child with hearing disability loses his/her ability to speak as well. All they can communicate with is sign language and the children here are great learners,” said Subarna Kumar Shrestha, trainer for HI children, while a seven year old Sima* with hearing disability enjoyed jumping on a trampoline.
Along with training the children, Shrestha say that parents should also be trained so they understand what their child wants to say due to which even parents are trained for a couple of days in the center.
While Sima could walk from one place to another and play various games, Sabin*, who is visually impaired, was busy with blocks. Feeling the edge of a block, Sabin was quick to find if a block could fit or not in the place he wants it to be added. 
By adding the blocks, Sabin had made a tall straight structure. When I asked him what he made, he replied saying ‘Nepal’s flag’. He was happy to make it.
Similar to Sabin, Sumit* was also busy with blocks. For Sumit the world had become darker recently but he did not seem to be affected due to it. Sumit was happy like other children in the center and was making different structures with the blocks.
“The children with disability do not seem to be affected due to it. But if someone speaks over their disability and makes a joke out of it, it will affect them. All they want is to be treated like everyone else,” said Bhattarai.
The children enjoy their time at the center. They have various aims to share with the trainers and counselors. However, once they graduate and join a school, they feel broken.
“The students are taught to help each other in the center and are provided with proper food and care. Many have called me personally and shared how much they miss the center,” added Bhattarai.
The center has been able to facilitate VI and HI students to get enrolled in a school but the students with VIMD have nowhere to go.
According to doctors and trainers at CHEERS, children with VIMD are scarcely admitted in any of the schools for disabled.
“A child with VIMD has multiple disabilities than only not being able to see. While one trainer could look after eight blind children, one trainer should solely look after one VIMD child due to which they are not accepted by schools,” said Upadhyay.
Despite the facilities of making a child with seeing or hearing disability, the enabling center goes through a lot of hardships just to bring children with such disabilities at the center.
The center has a search army to identify and bring children from different corners of the country with such disabilities. The search army includes eye hospitals, female community health workers, resource teachers and organisations working for the disabled.
“Children with disability are hidden due to which we have a search army for it. Children are hidden in a well-educated family as well,” added Upadhyay.
The center has received and enrolled children from 59 different districts of the country and made them capable. But, the center itself feels the need of some similar enabling centers in different parts of the country so it can be accessible for many.
“The country should have more similar enabling centers but there are not. We have no one other than the government but for them we are not an indispensable part. Those with disabilities have gone past all the barriers but yet are neglected,” said Bhattarai. 
“We can wake someone who is sleeping but not the one who is pretending to sleep. The government pretends to sleep when it comes across its responsibility towards the disabled,” Bhattarai added.
*Names have been changed.