MANGALAGIRI

HISTORY

Don Bosco Orphanage started in 1973, by Fr. Chinnappa Thomas at Brahmana Kodur for the poor Catholic boys, evolved to be a home for the orphans and the handicapped from 1975. The orphanage was shifted to Mangalagiri on 1st August 1976, under the name of Don Bosco Premnivas. In the same month an elementary school was started under the name Don Bosco Elementary School. It was upgraded into an upper primary school in the subsequent year. Premnivas became a regular religious community on 14th December 1979. A workshop for manufacturing and maintaining mobility equipments under the name Don Bosco Orthotic and Prosthetic Centre was opened on 9th January 1982. As the number of small boys increased the Salesians felt the need of associating sisters in their work. Sisters of St. Ann of Luzern joined us on 15th August 1984. On 12th September 1984, they started the Meyer Home taking care of the boarding of smaller boys of classes 1 to 4. A fully equipped Physiotherapy Centre with a qualified sister as therapist started functioning on 14th November 1987. A half way home for the socially handicapped and a post surgery recovery room for the handicapped were also opened on the same day. A small colony of 4 houses built on a site near Konalagunda railway station in view of settling some of our past pupils was also inaugurated on the same day. The upper primary school was upgraded to high school in June 1989.

SCOPE

The main scope of Don Bosco Premnivas is the integrated rehabilitation of Orthopedically Handicapped (OH) and Socially Handicapped (SH). It consists of:

Medical rehabilitation of the OH through restorative surgery, supply of Mobility Aids and Physiotherapy.
Educational rehabilitation of the OH and SH through academic qualifications. Being an integrated and co-education school, the poor boys and girls of the nearby villages also benefit. Residential care is provided for 100 students OH and SH in the proportion – two thirds and one third.
Psychological rehabilitation of the OH and SH through personal counselling and individual follow up and parent counselling sessions.
Social rehabilitation of the OH and SH. For the SH it would call for marriage and settling them.
Networking of the Differently abled collective at province level.