How a UP govt scheme is restoring the gift of hearing to children born with impairment

Time of India

11 hours ago

Noida: Four-year-old Humera's eyes light up at the sound of her mother's jingling bangles — a simple pleasure that was alien to her until recently. At her modest home in Dasna, she's discovering a world of sounds, one chime at a time.
Humera isn't alone. She's among several beneficiaries of UP govt's surgical grant scheme, which is bringing the gift of hearing to children across NCR.
The scheme, offering cochlear implants worth up to Rs 6 lakh for each child who is hard of hearing, is turning the tide for families who could have never afforded such costly medical interventions without financial help.
In Noida's Bishanpura, Naziya, the youngest of four siblings, is gradually stepping out of her soundless cocoon.
Her mother Daniya Khatun, a factory worker who became the family's sole breadwinner after her husband's death, recalls the moment she discovered her two kids had a hearing loss.
"During a visit to Chhattisgarh, when Naziya was just nine months old, my brother noticed that she and her brother Ayaan weren't responding to sounds. We had been clapping and shaking rattles near their ears, but they remained indifferent. It was heartbreaking to realise they were growing up in a silent world," says Daniya.
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While private hospitals quoted surgery costs of over Rs 4 lakh, hope for Daniya emerged through an unexpected source — a govt school teacher who informed them about the scheme.
Although Ayaan couldn't benefit from the scheme because of weak nerves, Naziya had a successful surgery. "She can hear efficiently now. We do online therapy sessions through her elder sister's phone, teaching her to speak and form sounds. It feels like a new future is unfolding for our daughter," she adds.
The transformation is equally priceless in Dadri, where five-year-old Devansh is finding his voice. His father Satender Tongad, a daily wager, says, "The surgery was done in Meerut a year ago, and we've been in Kanpur for his speech therapy. I'm now hopeful that Devansh will lead a normal, happy life, like the rest of us."
The scheme's impact is reflected in numbers — 214 hearing-impaired children across 63 districts received implants worth Rs 12.8 crore through 2024-25.
In Noida and Ghaziabad, where the scheme focuses exclusively on cochlear implants since its 2023 launch, eight children have already benefited.
"We identify beneficiaries through govt hospitals and schools. Candidates undergo medical screening at Meerut's Nutema Hospital to determine eligibility based on their hearing nerve integrity," says Sudhir Tyagi, district divyangjan welfare officer in Ghaziabad.
The initiative is intensifying efforts to reach out to more children through health camps and block-level surveys. "Our goal is to provide treatment to children from economically weak families, giving them a chance at a full, independent life," says Ashish Kumar, Tyagi's counterpart in Noida.
For families like Humera's, whose father is a daily wager, the scheme offers more than medical intervention — it offers hope. "She used to be so quiet. Now, she tries to talk back and laughs at things she hears," says her father, Aas Mohammad.
"Through online speech and hearing therapy sessions, Humera is gradually adapting to a world full of sounds," he adds.
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