Established in 1977 as a result
of the sincere efforts of Mr. A.L. Dias, the
then Governor of West Bengal and a few committed
social workers, SOS Children’s Village,
Kolkata has completed 29 years dedicated to
the service of many children in need. The Bangladesh
Liberation War in 1971 saw a mass exodus of
people from East Pakistan (territory of Pakistan
before birth of Bangladesh) to India, particularly
to West Bengal. In the chaos that followed the
war, many children became homeless & orphaned.
A registered Society namely SOS Children’s
Villages, West Bengal, India, was then formed
to provide care to these children. The then
Governor of West Bengal Mr A.L. Dias was named
ex-officio President, and eminent social workers,
educationists, administrators and industrialists
of the city as members of the Society. The Children’s
Village is situated on a plot of 3.64 acres
donated by the Government of West Bengal in
the new planned city of Bidhan Nagar, which
was then coming up on the eastern fringe of
Kolkata Metropolis. On 28.02.1977, the SOS Children’s
Village Kolkata started functioning with 16
children from a Government run reception center
of the State of West Bengal. Mrs. Joan Dias
Inaugurated the Children’s Village Kolkata
on 17th September 1977. The Village was dedicated
by Dr. Hermann Gmeiner on 21st January 1978.
The capital of West Bengal,
Kolkata is one of the four metropolitan cities
of India. A vibrant city with a distinct socio-political
culture, Kolkata has evolved into one of the
major commercial areas and a great learning
centre in the sub continent in a short span
of about 400 years. Kolkata city is situated
on the west banks of Hooghly River and is 60
kms from the Bay of Bengal. The city lies close
to the neighboring country, Bangladesh. The
city has an international airport and is connected
by rail to all the major cities by Eastern Railways
& South Eastern Railways. Kolkata is also
a major river port in eastern India.
The SOS Children's Village
Kolkata consists of 15 family houses, Youth
Facilities and a Retired Mother Home. Currently
the Village has 154 (50 boys & 104 girls)
children staying in 15 family homes under the
loving care of their SOS Mothers. 142 children
(Kindergarten – 14, Day School- 128) are
studying in different schools. 7 children are
in boarding schools. 1 girl is doing Vocational
Training. The Village has conducted 142 marriages
till date.
Besides the regular infrastructure,
the Children’s Village has a retired Mother’s
Home where 9 retired mothers are staying at
present.
SOS
Youth Facility
In the year 1986, SOS Youth
Village, Kolkata was established at Ganganagar,
which is 20 kilometers away from the Children’s
Village. Kolkata Children’s Village has
three youth facilities namely Sopan, Arunodaya
& Gharonda. At present, 15 children are
in Arunodaya, 11 in Sopan & 2 in Gharonda.
SOS
Girl’s Facility
SOS Girls Facility started
in the year 1990 within the Children’s
Village complex in eight family houses. In 1997,
the Girl’s facility shifted to a separate
building owned by SOS-India. Currently there
are 12 girls living in the Girl’s Facility
and pursuing different vocations.
