New Delhi: The Minister for Women & Child Development, Smt Maneka Sanjay Gandhi, alongwith Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, Shri Adityanath Yogi will inaugurate the widows’ home ‘Krishna Kutir’ at Vrindavan, Mathura, Uttar Pradesh tomorrow. The Minister for Women Welfare, UP, Prof. Reeta Bahuguna Joshi; Minister of State for Women Welfare, UP, Smt Swati Singh; and MP from Mathura, Smt Hema Malini will remain present on the occasion. Krishna Kutir is a special home for 1000 widows set up by the Ministry of Women & Child Development under Swadhar Greh scheme of the Ministry and is the largest ever facility of its kind created by a government organization.
The New Home for Widows, Krishna Kutir has been constructed on 1.4 hectare of land through National Building Construction Corporation (NBCC) at a cost of 57.48 Crores (including cost of the land) with a capacity of 1000 inmates. The design of the Home has been prepared in consultation with Helpage India and is old age friendly. It consists of ground plus three floors with the facilities of ramp, lifts, supply of adequate electricity, water and other amenities for meeting the requirement of senior citizens and persons with special challenges. The facility is also equipped with a large modern kitchen and a skill cum training centre. The construction of the home has been funded by Central Government and will be managed by the Government of Uttar Pradesh. To connect with the netizens, the Ministry of Women & Child Development had launched a month-long contest (Nov-Dec, 2017) on social media, ‘Name the Vrindavan Ashram’. The entry of Ms. Sunita Katyal, Krishna Kutir, was adjudged as the winning entry by the selection committee. Smt Maneka Sanjay Gandhi had launched the construction of the project in 2016.
The widows’ home has been constructed by the WCD Ministry to mitigate the plight of widows living in pathetic condition in Vrindavan. The Ministry took cognizance of this shocking condition of widows living in Vrindavan who refused to go back to their native place or their home. In order to provide a dignified and humane living conditions to them, the Ministry, as a special case, constructed this Krishna Kutir at the temple town of Vrindavan with all the required facilities.
