Who We Are

People with disability are the most vulnerable and marginalized group of people. They live in isolation, segregation, disparagement, poverty and virtual dependence on charity and even pity. They are the victim of the community misconception and stigmas denying them of their inalienable and recognized rights. As a result, they shut themselves from the world and they underestimate themselves thinking that they do not fit in the society like other able-bodied children.
Thus, it becomes a painful reality how there is limited involvement or we can find no involvement of their parents or guardians in formulation and implementation of the policies related to them. In addition, the programs introduced by the Government have not benefitted them much. Therefore, non-governmental organizations have been providing care and different needed support activities targeting people with disabilities.
Conflict Victim and Disable Society (CVDS-Nepal) is one of these non- profit organizations located at Shankarapur Municipality-6, Shalambutar,Sankhu,Kathmandu.This organization has been devoting unceasingly with the aim of supporting the people with disability in Nepal since 2005. The organization has been providing food, clothes, shelter, basic care and support to till date mentally and physically disabled children through the ‘Rehabilitation Center for Children with disability due to Cerebral Palsy (CP)’ project.

Vision

Children with disability due to Cerebral Palsy by making them capable enough to lead an independent life thereby mainstreaming them towards national development.

I am Yub Raj Thapa born in 23rd march, 1973 in Hasanpur VDC, a remote place of Bhojpur district, Nepal. I am the second child among 6 children (4 sons and 2 daughters) of my parents. I was not only an active and curious sibling but also very good in study. My schooling was started from SHREE JAN SEVA LOWER SECONDARY school which was located nearby my house. I often stood first in study in the classes. After I passed class 7 I had to go four hours far from my house on feet to pursue my further education since we did not have high school in our village. When I was admitted to Shree Sagarmatha SECONDARY SCHOOL that time I was only fourteen year old. It was only me going that school from my area which used to lead me going alone finding school friends from only the middle of the path. I used feel often fear going through the jungle and hill where there were many dangerous animal like tigers and beers. due to fear I used to carry a stick with me from my home thinking I could be safe and secured with it. I would not even get money to have my lunch and snacks going to the school. Struggling through hunger, tiredness and thrust coming back home from the school was my normal phenomena. ALTHOUGH my family had enough resource providing a pocket money, I never got money to have my food caused starving time and again. However, I continued my study and passed grade 8.
While I was studying in grade 9, unfortunately I developed pain in my backbone. The paining situation went worsen than the worse day by day. I ended up going to school. In remote place, WHERE traditional belief and superstition were highly rooted in the villages in those days. As advices received from our neighbors and friends my family took me to traditional healers for my treatment. They began to take me to them daily-sometimes, one after other persons. Innumerable chickens, Pigeons including vegetables WERE SACRIFICED BUT IT DIDN’T help changing anything in my condition. The more I was taken to traditional healers more my condition got worsen.
The reason that I was not taken in to hospital for treatment was strong belief that hospital could not treat such type of disease, cost and distance associated with it. Until then the disease attacked acted more severely. The part of my body over my knees and below my waist started paining. The process to take me to traditional healer didn’t stop so I began to take a stick for walking. After some days my right leg also stuck moving. Then I was in a condition not able to move from a place. When I became paralyzed from moving just sitting in a particular place then only I was carried by a potter up to the place where bus service were connected . My father took me to a private health clinic in Biratnagar, Morang district for treatment. Later IT CAME IN MY KNOWLEDGE that the health clinic was the aryurbhadhik clinic. The doctor gave us some ayurbeddhik medicine saying the medicine would work well. I would have recovered by ninth month by taking the medicine as prescribed. So we came back to home with this medicine and the advice given by the doctor. I returned home carried on a basket by a potter. With the hope of recovery and the relief from the disease, I used to take medicine routinely but the effort went in vain as I couldn’t fell any improvement in my bodily condition. Again I put a proposal fourth requesting my family member to take me to another hospital but the proposal was not heard at all .This situation invited conflict and quarrels everyday between my father and me. I was almost tired with my situation and behavior showed by my father. Finally I decided to suicide myself taking poison. It was the month of July, my father and mother had gone to terai (plain region) to tilde the field and plant the rice. One day, I was with my six years sister who didn’t know what poison was and it worked for. Getting advantage of her innocence I asked her to purchases four pockets of rat killing poison from nearby shop. The poison was stirred in a glass with water and kept it under my pong. I wrote in a paper the agony and givens to wards my family and reason of my decision of suicide and kept it under the pillow. I HAD WRITTEN IN THAT paper that I wanted proper treatment and recover in addition to continue my study and do good thing for the society and my family itself. But my dreams couldn’t be fulfilled. My condition happened to be worsening day by day .therefore I thought leaving my family, friends, relatives and leaving the whole world would be the best freedom for my soul and body. Indeed I had a intimate friend in my neighborhood with whom I often shared my feelings and emotion. He was out of the village at the moment. I wanted to say my last words to him before swallowing off the poison after a couple of days upon his arrival in the village. However, in main time there was a lot of impulse occurring in my mind. In other words, my mind was out of order-I could not sense out well time and again what I spoke out. During this situation, this very secret development was spoken with one of my brothers. One of the neighbors has been informed about the development of mine. He came to me. We had begun the dialogue. During our conversation I said I was hanging at branch of banyan tree. The root of the tree was cut by the mouse. The tree would fall soon. There was a den under the tree. Inside the den there was anaconda sitting looking at me with opened mouth to eat me away. I would fall soon and would be eaten by the anaconda. Neighbor said if I fell in the mouth of the anaconda you would be eaten and would be nice. But if you were fallen other side not at the mouth of the anaconda, then situation would further worsen. Means I would not die through the poison. Then, I realized it might not be the good decision. So I relinquished the idea of the being dead poisoning myself. I replied him positively saying I would not take poison. With this development I was not interested to speak to him further. He kindly advised to throw the poison away and burn the note I had written which done accordingly. The plot ended leaving only one more alternative to venture to Kathmandu for treatment and continue the study. But I didn’t know anything about Kathmandu. To know about it I sent a letter to radio Nepal, only a nationwide radio station functioning in those days, asking a question in one relevant radio broadcasting program. My letter was read in the 19th day I had sent it. When I heard my name with my detail address I was so surprised and thrilled. although I had the radio set quite functioning with me I did not listen my question answer myself directly. When one of the neighbors told me that my question was answered then only I came to know it. They told me that I was suggested to contact Kathmandu Social Welfare Council which would help me. I thought I should go to Kathmandu then but neither did I have money nor I would get help from the family. But I thought to try once asking my father thinking he might agree fulfilling this desire. Hoping I might be able to go to Kathmandu I told him, if he would take me to Kathmandu I would continue my studies apart from improving the physical condition. But he said to me (other son who are fine and have leg didn’t study how will u having no leg study). He also said that to invest money for my studies is like throwing the money in the river. Now I brainstormed what to do. How would I go to Kathmandu achieving my final destination? Thinking like it I bought a chicken and it started growing being bigger day by day and begun laying an eggs and hatching it producing chicken. The process kept on continuously being a good source of earning money by selling them. Apart from chicken I even learnt to play cards inviting people in my house frequently and I didn’t feel alone, too. Playing card was for entertainment as well as gambling. This turned like a good business in my case thereby winning the card earning a 10 to 15 rupee daily. The friends who used to play with me used to say in half way joking manner that "we feel jealous to give you money directly so we are giving you through playing cards."At that time I was able to meet Mr. Balkrishna rai, then leader of Nepal who was from my district. He had come to my house in a connection of his political campaign. I talked with him about my problem and longing to go to Kathmandu. He promises to take me to Kathmandu with him .as he promised finding a good luck day we thought to go to Kathmandu. We searched for a potter. That time my father had gone to terai to harvest the paddy. So we send a message to him writing "your son is going to Kathmandu and if you love him then come home. When my father heard the message this time he immediately came home and we both together went to Kathmandu. When we reached Kathmandu then firstly we went to Bir hospital, one of the oldest government hospitals, where the doctor examined me and told my father to do CT scan which I did not understand properly. But I was told by saying that my disease couldn’t be cure then. Then I went to Khagendra New Life Center, the first residential rehabilitation center for the persons with disability in Nepal located at jorpati, Kathmandu. But there was no place for my accommodation. At the same time I heard that there was a health camp being organized in Nepalgunj (Mid West Nepal) providing free assistive devices for the needy disable people. So I requested my father to capture that opportunity I wanted wheelchair easing my mobility. My father responded conversely saying to go to Kathmandu solving your problem. When we came here you are saying to go to Nepalgunj and when you will go there you may say to go to India. You may finish the little property that I have. We also need to live and your brother, sisters also need to live.) With this statement he returned back to Sunsari District, eastern, Terai where he had owned some land several years before leaving me alone in Kathmandu.
BAL Krishna Thapa, then Leader played my hotel cost and purchased a bus ticket and send me to sun sari district. When I reached there again I requested my father to take me to Nepalgunj. Then he agreed to take the ticket to by bus tickets to Nepalgunj. When he went out of the house, the neighbors' told him "your son will waste all your money, if you follow his demands" so he returned back. When he returned home then I scold him and a quarrel began. I scolded the neighbors saying" if u can help then help me if u can't then don’t stop others". After then my father again went to take the ticket and we went to Nepalgunj finally.
I collected one wheelchair from the health camp. We came back Sunsari with that wheelchair for me. With help of the wheelchair I improved my mobility there. I admitted a local school and continued my schooling smoothly. When my School Leaving Certificate (slc) examination was over, I was alone; my father had gone to village during those days. so taking advantage of this time I sold 2 quintals of rice and went to Kathmandu with my younger brother, prem Thapa lying that we would be going to visit Kathmandu. In 3 days journey we reached Kathmandu. After reaching here, WE visited to one of the organizations working for the rehabilitation of the persons with disability where medical treatment facility to was available. TO examine myself quickly I requested the phisio therapist, krisha Gurung. But he refused admitting me saying that I would wait more 3 months for my turn. Then I stayed outside with sadness cursing my fate. In the main time,
I had seen the visitors coming there would greet the staff by saying (Namaste) and how are you and so on. In return, the welcoming behavior from staff would be showed. But I had just come from village, became shy, didn’t know to say namaste and so forth. Might be it was the reason why the staff didn't come in front of me and didn’t talked with me. so I thought I must be proactive-saying Namaste, how are you ETC. then I told Namaste to one of the foreign volunteers, then she also Replied it and came near to me, sat near me and asked me what was my problem. Then I turned out my story and told that I did not get admission in the hospital. Then immediately she went inside and brought the phios therapy out and requested him to take my admission then krisha Gurung accepted her request and admitted me for 6 months. I thanked her so much. Then my phisio therapy begun and within 3 month I was able to move a little. They were also happy and slowly were improving. The result of slc exam came out. I knew that I was fail in English subject. With this result, I did not lose my hope and efforts. So I reappeared the exam too next year and passed SLC, an iron gate for a carrier development here in Nepal. While I completed course of phisio therapy, I engaged to paid work in the same organization to earn little money. I admitted a college nearby to continue my education. But seeing me a disable the public vehicle would not stop while going to college, I use to fall a lot when getting into the vehicle. Fighting this situation I was able to continue college level study for 3 years. Then after due to my technical problem I was compelled to discontinue the study. Then we few friends sat together discuss to establish an organization to be run by ourselves. We were able to establish an organization named conflict victim and disable society. This organization has been registered with the local government of Nepal under NGO registration Act. Soon also affiliated with social welfare council's started working as the founder president .in the same year I had an intercaste marriage to very generous lady. A year after we were lucky to have a baby boy. Now he is studying in class 9. ( but corana is distrub now.. he is in home. We realized there are children and adult with intellectual disability and multiple disability severely deprived from opportunity living in a very pathetic condition everywhere across the country. Where will there is is a way. We began this work. Now we have been providing orphans left in the street, kept in house without providing basic facilities and other orphans. We have run a residential rehabilitation facility. A team of 9 staff and staffs have dedicated to support this 50 children till date providing necessary care and support - rendering phisio therapy service, regular health check up from doctor ,special education classes ETC.
I would like to end my autobiography here appealing all of you for your generous support to lifting thousand of the persons with disability and people living in extreme poverty, hunger, illiteracy, capacity building training and health treatment in our communities. Being a social worker myself With a strong determination and conviction, through my organization I would like to concentrate and focus promoting the livelihood of 1000 persons with disability and marginalized people in life time period .Certainly we are nothing without begging your hands and heart with us.

Thank You.
Yub Raj Thapa

President
Conflict Victim and Disable Society-Nepal
Shankharapur Municipality- 6,Shalambutar, Shakhu, Kathmandu, Nepal
Tel:9851160868/9841360868
Email: [email protected]
Facebook: cvdsnepal/yubraj thapa bairagi