A beautiful mind

Many of us will recall the brilliant movie, A Beautiful Mind, in which Russell Crowe played the Nobel winning economist John Nash, who won the prize in 1994 for his work in the game theory. The noted genius battled schizophrenia, regarded as cancer among mental diseases, to fight back and experience remission. Also, the death of the noted mathematician Bashistha Narayan Singh, who was comparatively uncared for, was in the news for the relative indifference he suffered from.

Here in the heart of the city, at the Sector 17 bus stand, is a kiosk with a board saying it is run by Prayatn, an NGO that works for the disadvantaged sections of society, empowering the marginalised by building up their capacities for a decent, dignified and independent life. In this case, it is for the rehabilitation of the mentally sick patients. Sanjay Chadha, who mans the counter, is assisted by Namita, a female colleague, a post-graduate in chemistry. They check the sales and get a salary for the work they do.

RPS Kapoor, the moving force behind the initiative, retired as chief manager of the Punjab and Sindh Bank. Of his five children, the fourth one, a son, fell sick, and had to be institutionalised. Life has never been the same for Kapoor who has taken up the cudgels on behalf of those affected and is now working for their care and rehabilitation. The patients are referred to him for rehabilitation by the Disability Assessment Rehabilitation and Triage (DART) at the GMCH-32. Kapoor says most patients are from well-to-do families and their main concern is as to who will look after them after they pass away.

Prayatn runs kiosks at other places also, including the Estate office, Neelam theatre, Rose Garden and the Garden of Fragrance in Sector 36. Kapoor is dedicated to the cause and says post care is a major concern. Along with its sister concern Umeed, Prayatn works for vocational rehabilitation to provide employment to such persons under supervision.

The NGO has acquired half an acre of land on Sirhind road at Sampla to set up a home for them. It will seek to address various concerns like those who are in need of long treatment, a day care centre for those who want to go back in the evening, for those whose family members want to leave them there for some time if they have to go out of town. It will also train caregivers to cope with the arduous task of dealing with such cases. Kapoor laments that disability is a major concern and is a neglected area for not enough government attention is forthcoming. I buy two dairy milk chocolates from the stall hoping that help pours in for a tough cause.