~ Akshaya partners with SCAN to develop customised housing and address the concern of “What After Us?” for Parents of Persons with special needs ~
Chennai, 22nd July 2021: Leading real estate developer, Akshaya Private Ltd has signed an MoU with Special Child Assistance Network (SCAN), a Chennai-based NGO for SCAN’s Inclusive Housing Initiative in the project Akshaya Today at Kelambakkam. The initiative aims to offer homes at Akshaya Today customised to the needs of people with special needs in a larger inclusive environment. The Akshaya Today project offers a full range of amenities such as a clubhouse, swimming pool, a 2-acre garden with aesthetic walkways as well as several disability friendly features such as railings, ramps, audio announcements and braille-text on elevators. It is slated for completion by March 2022.
A unique feature of the SCAN Inclusive Housing initiative at Akshaya Today is the Group Homes that would be managed by SCAN in partnership with Vidya Sagar. These are shared accommodations (co-living) for adults with special needs. The aim is to offer care that is as close as it can get to the care they will get at home, when that option ceases to be available (when parents are too old, for example). The SCAN Group Homes will come with all modern conveniences, appropriate caregiver support for the persons with disability, and managed services for food, housekeeping and maintenance.
SCAN will also offer a vocational centre with a range of self-employment and supported employment options, and a therapy centre to provide required therapies for persons with special needs as well as all others in the Akshaya Today campus. This enables families with special children or any person with special needs to live life to the fullest of their ability.
People booking a home in the project Akshaya Today under the Akshaya-SCAN tie-up will become an integral part of a 21-acre mini-township with 2134 homes, and will have options of 1, 2 or 3 BHKs, at preferential prices. In addition, they can get customised modifications, if any, specific to their requirement like wider doors for wheelchair access and customised bathrooms.
Speaking on the occasion Mr. Chitty Babu, Chairman & CEO of Akshaya said “Akshaya is honoured to be a partner in this first-of-its-kind housing initiative. We have been a pioneer of cutting-edge ideas and have achieved several firsts in the real-estate category. In our 26 years, Akshaya is well-known for offering differently-abled and elder-friendly homes, as well as kids-friendly communities. These initiatives have been well-received and appreciated by homebuyers across different age groups. We have always been in the quest for doing something unique and different in real estate, and SCAN’s Inclusive Living concept has inspired us to prove our mettle once again in this category. With our 26-years expertise in this field, we intend to provide SCAN members with a holistic housing solution supported by various amenities.”
Speaking on the initiative Mr. Gopinath Ramakrishnan, Managing Trustee of SCAN said: “We are delighted to bring to fruition this initiative, the first of its kind in the country. We embarked on an extensive selection process and zeroed in on Akshaya after wide consultations with our members. The aim of this initiative which has been our dream for many years is true inclusion where families with special needs are a part of the social fabric as equal citizens, supported with services focused on their unique requirements. Even more important than physical accessibility is the psychological accessibility and acceptance by the larger societal networks as a full member of the community. Our partnership with Akshaya is breaking new ground and we hope to extend our collaboration to many more locations.”
Speaking on the initiative Ms. Poonam Natarajan, Founder of Vidya Sagar said “The inclusive living concept developed by SCAN is an excellent and very doable model. It will manage to create a supportive community for adults with disabilities, without developing an exclusive facility. I believe that SCAN’s inclusive model, and SCAN’s partnership with Akshaya, will be a pioneering initiative in India.”
The press meet was attended by actors Ms. Suhasini Maniratnam and Mr. Babloo Prithiveeraj. Speaking on the occasion, Ms. Suhasini Maniratnam said, “This initiative by Akshaya and SCAN is truly the need of today. This pandemic has taught our society the importance of being together, as well as being inclusive in our approach by accepting different people from various walks of life. This initiative has given me a lot of hope for humanity and for our country and city.”
Speaking on this unique initiative, Mr. Babloo Prithiveeraj said, “As a father of a special child, my wife and I were concerned about my son’s future after our lifetime. I was on the lookout for the right home that offered inclusive living for some time now, and when I came to know about this initiative by Akshaya and SCAN, I jumped at the opportunity to buy a home at Akshaya Today and give my son an inclusive 5-star lifestyle.”
A special video byte with a congratulatory message from Actor Revathi for the Akshaya-SCAN initiative was also played out for the press.
About Akshaya Pvt. Ltd:
Akshaya was founded in 1995 under the stewardship of Mr. T. Chitty Babu. A first-generation entrepreneur, T Chitty Babu ventured into the world of business with just Rs. 10000 in his pocket and plenty of self-conviction, confidence and clarity in what he wanted to do. Twenty-four years into the journey, today Akshaya has grown into one of the most awarded companies in the country, acclaimed for its transparent business practices and innovation. Driven by the core values of ‘Transparency & Uncompromise’, Akshaya has now earned the distinction of being one among the ‘Most Reputed Real Estate Brands in India’ and the only player from Chennai to feature in a report brought out by Trust Research Advisory (TRA) and Blue Bytes based on media and consumer perceptions. Akshaya offers 10-year maintenance and all the homes are IGBC Pre-certified green homes. Akshaya has been ranked Tamil Nadu’s No. 1 real estate developer and India’s No. 9 developed by Construction Week Magazine in November 2018. The company has certifications in Integrated Management Systems (IMS) ISO 9001:2015, ISO 14001:2015, ISO 45001:2018 Management System and SA 8000:2008. It has been awarded with CNBC/CRISIL ‘Highest Transparency’ Award; NDTV ‘Most Transparent Developer in India’ Award and CNBC/CRISIL ‘Best Legal Systems’ award for four years in a row. The company is also a pioneer in developing differently abled/elder-friendly homes. The company is also a member of CREDAI. Today, the company is reputed for many original initiatives including the ingenious ‘Akshaya Home Facts Book’ for enlightening homebuyers on their rights. The last 24 years have seen the company excel in both home and commercial domains by developing 160 landmark projects in South India.
About SCAN:
Special Child Assistance Network (SCAN) is a support group for families of special needs children, based in Chennai, India, co-founded by Gopinath Ramakrishnan and Mini Hari. The journey of SCAN started in 2012. SCAN is now a well-known group in Chennai, with over 600 members, and close to 4000 supporters on Facebook. SCAN members have children with various special needs – Autism Spectrum Disorder, Cerebral Palsy, Down’s Syndrome, Intellectual Disability, Dyslexia, ADHD, etc.
SCAN provides a platform for interaction for the special needs community:
- Special Needs families: parents, special needs children, siblings and care-givers
- People working with Special Needs children: educators, therapists, etc.
- People interested in Special Needs / Volunteers
Some of the key initiatives that SCAN is currently focusing on are:
- Inclusive Living: enabling a community that allows persons with disability to live, work and play amongst mainstream society.
- Inclusive Employment: promoting the cause of meaningful employment for persons with disability, especially neuro-diverse individuals.
- Creating Awareness: sensitizing the public about persons with special needs, understanding challenges faced by them, how to identify a lost/wandering person, etc.
SCAN is registered as a Public Charitable Trust in Tamil Nadu, and under Section 12A and Section 80G of India’s Income Tax Act, 1961. Learn more about us on Facebook by visiting our group www.facebook.com/groups/SpecialChildAssistanceNetwork/ or email us on contact@scanfamily.com.
About Vidya Sagar:
Vidya Sagar is a 36-year-old parent initiative based out of Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India. The focus of our work is for the holistic development of children and adults with neurological impairments. The focus is on individuals with high restriction and high support needs. Vidya Sagar works on demystification of disability, empowering persons with special needs and their families and the communities they live in with the knowledge and skill while strongly advocating for inclusion in all spheres of life. The work is across life span through a range of innovative programs right from babies to adults. The organization believes in the right to equality of opportunity, an inclusive society where differences are celebrated, that disability is a development and a human rights issue.
Started in 1985 by the mother of a child with disability, Vidya Sagar is known today for the quality, technical know-how, range of innovative and impactful programs, it’s “professionalism with care” and the pro-active and positive spirit of its team of staff and children. What sets us apart is our belief that all disabled persons (no matter how profound the disability) have a right to education and inclusion.
One of the focus areas for Vidya Sagar is titled Begin to Live Interdependently with Support Systems (BLISS). This started in 2018 to address the question of “What will happen to my child after me?”, and to find alternatives to institutionalisation.
