Maharogi Sewa Samiti is a non profit organisation in Central India helping socially retarded people to enhance their livelihood capabilities through self-discovery and empowering them to contribute back to the society.
It was founded in 1949 by internationally known human rights activist Baba Amte, to better the plight of the marginalized leprosy patients and people with disabilities through treatment, training and active inducement in self managed communes.
MSS shelters rather unusual cohort of 3500 people spread in four districts of Central India consisting of leprosy patients, people with disabilities like the hearing and, visually impaired and orthopaedically handicapped, orphans, senior citizens and socially backward people like tribals. MSS aspires to make each of its differently-abled inmates self-reliant by imparting value based training thus enabling them to live their life with dignity.
MSS work on wide spectrum of activities ranging from provision of basic healthcare and rehabilitation, development of land and water resource, enhancement of incomes and sustainable livelihoods, imparting formal and vocational education and sensitization of youth on environmental and socioeconomic issues. MSS strives to couple innovative tools and technology with the above activities for environment friendly means of coexistence.
MSS has been a pioneer in medical treatment and rehabilitation of leprosy patients in the world. Till date around 80 thousand people have benefited through its activities. It is fast becoming a focal point from where the quintessence of new paradigms of social work and developmental activities is spreading far and wide. The institution has grown over the last five decades to become an internationally renowned institution and perhaps the largest community of leprosy afflicted and people with disabilities in the world
The organisation of residents in communes at Anandwan permits a cluster of people live together as family sharing their resources among themselves and thus develop the relation of love and affection towards other afflicted individual.
Swaranandwan
MSS also began taking care of and educating the blind, hearing impaired, physically challenged, and school and village dropouts, orphans and children of the disabled residents of Anandwan.
Apart from formal education, a variety of vocational training activities are undertaken by the Institution to make them capable of self-earning and a respectable livelihood. Musical and cultural training is one of the most important training these children and young adults get.
Disabilities and restriction of movements and activities of the blind and the physically challenged normally develop in them self-consciosness, inferiority complex, depression, feelings of vulnerability and loss of self-esteem. It has been found that Swaranandwan has helped the artistes overcome these to such an extent that the positive frame of mind which the disabled display now makes the non-disabled persons who come into their contact feel ashamed of themselves.