The Cheshire Home in Bariatu, Ranchi is abuzz with activity right now with ten of its special inmates busy printing exercise books for schools.
Cradles like St Xavier's, Don Bosco, Cluny, Ursuline Montessori and Little Flower have for the first time placed bulk orders so that the exercise books are ready before the new academic session begins in April.
The inmates are working round-the-clock from 9am to 6pm to complete printing around 90,000 copies before March 31.
But, the additional work has brought smiles on their faces.
"It was an arduous task to persuade schools to give us orders for printing exercise copies. But, we interacted with the cradles on a regular basis and even submitted a sample to each of the schools," said inmate Dhanijeet Ram Chand (45) who took the initiative to contact the schools in order to widen the scope of their work and augment their income.
After bagging the order, Dhanijeet along with fellow inmates Munna Kacchap, Raju Horo and Ignatius Barla procured the white paper rolls from Upper Bazar market and started working on the project. Soon, a few other inmates joined them.
"The assignment is not at all easy. We have to be extra careful in printing exercise books, as schoolchildren will be using these," said Munna, adding that the printing machine was donated by consultancy major Mecon in 2012.
The bulk order is likely fill up the home's coffers. The inmates are hopeful that their monthly income will increase by around Rs 3,000.
"We usually get small orders from banks to print forms. Such orders fetch around Rs 3,000 a month. We are thankful to school authorities to lend us a helping hand," said inmate Raju Horo.
Principal of St Xavier's School Father Ajit Xess said the main purpose to assign this task to the inmates was to make them feel that they were a part of the mainstream society. "We respect their work. It's a noble cause for us and not pity on them. I have asked them to print 7,000 copies for us," he added.
Cheshire Home has 40 inmates. While some earn by making cards or weaving, a few others pursue their college education.
