 The Interfaith Children’s Home of Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh, was built during the period December 1998 to April 2000, to create an opportunity for Dalit (‘untouchable’) orphaned children to receive an education which would otherwise be denied them. Most would probably be involved in child labour, begging, rag-picking or prostitution.
Collective Effort
The funding, building work and organisation of the home has been, and continues to be, the collective effort of people from a wide variety of faith traditions, cultures and backgrounds. This has been the vision of the Family Federation for World Peace: to create models of harmony and cooperation in society, and more peaceful world for all our children to inherit.
The first 2 students to graduate from the Home, and local Blue Blooms School, and who progressed onto Further Education in college, graduated with a Teacher Training qualification and a Bachelor of Commerce (computers) degree in April 2010. They will also graduate with dignity, great aspirations and self esteem.
Interfaith and Communal Harmony.
A unique feature of the project has been the fact that people of all faiths have been involved in the funding, building and maintenance of the Home. Initial seed money to build the Home came from churches, mosques, temples, gurudwaras, etc, and in particular through members of a Women’s Peace Group in Birmingham, representing all faiths, races and cultural backgrounds. Since then, support has broadened in the UK, and abroad, mainly through the work of the Women’s Federation for World Peace.
The foundations for the Home were built by 36 young people from around the world, again representing all faith traditions, in a Youth Service Project in December 1998, and the Dalit children in the Home come from Hindu, Christian and Muslim backgrounds, and are growing up together as a family, promoting the concept of Communal Harmony in India. |
