The Banyan – it evoked images of a sprawling campus dotted with trees with a magnificent banyan towering over all of them. Silly, I know….very childish, in fact….but what I actually saw over there was too overwhelming…..it left me mute…the few minutes I spent there left me drained emotionally…the building itself was too drab, and the interior was also dampening…dampening on the spirit and on the senses. The inmates of the Banyan, so many of them, all women, most of them mentally retarded in different degrees, were scattered all over the place, lining the corridors. And as far as I could see, there seemed to be very few people to look after them. They were all being cared for in the best possible manner possible, I was sure. Running for a home for the aged and the infirm and orphans seems no big deal when compared to looking after destitute mentally unstable women. They are not easy to control, they are not in their ‘right senses’ literally, and therefore cannot be expected to fall in line with the routines of daily life. They have to be tackled with great care and sensitivity. A large park with shady trees and flowering plants to cheer the senses and interspersed with lots of benches to sit and relax could have a soothing effect on this mentally retarded people. The building itself could be made more cheerful. All this would mean more space and more people to look after the place, which literally means more money.

 The young girl who took us around surprised me, in fact, made me feel ashamed. At her age, most girls would be dating or freaking out. Finding her there, and that too on a Sunday of all days left me feeling guilty all over. I believe there are about 350 women there now. They are picked up from the streets, found abandoned or wandering aimlessly. There are rehabilitation programmes for these women, but it is not always that their relatives are willing to take them back after rehabilitation. There is stigma attached to these people. Even if they become alright, and are willing to earn their keep by working as maids or else, there are not many takers. Sad plight. They were all smiles when they saw us…some of them greeted us with folded hands…yet others attempted to make conversation with us. One of them even asked if I would take her out for a movie. I was so overwhelmed…was very near tears.  The girl told me that they could do with a lot of help around the place, both administrative work and to take care of those people there. Money is not the only need, volunteers are also required in large numbers to run the place. Some large-hearted doctors visit the place on a regular basis treating the inmates there. What the place needs is still more large-hearted people.