April 16, 2026

Sobati: Supporting Therapy for Children with Developmental Delays

Donor support funded developmental therapy for 18 children with autism, cerebral palsy, and global developmental delay through Saamarthya Foundation's Sobati Project.

Through the generosity of donors on Udayaa, Navya Nagothu's Sobati campaign raised ₹68,500 for children who urgently needed developmental support but whose families could not afford it. Of that total, ₹63,362 reached Saamarthya Foundation directly for programme delivery, funding therapy sessions for 18 children identified through community outreach in Hyderabad. This report is an honest account of what that money did.

For many of the 18 children this campaign supported, the Sobati Project was the first time they had ever received professional developmental care. They come from families where parents work as daily wage labourers and domestic workers, where a condition like autism or cerebral palsy is often invisible to the healthcare system simply because no one has ever come to look. Saamarthya Foundation and its network of Anganwadi workers changed that, and donors on Udayaa made it possible to sustain the therapy those children needed after being identified.

How these children were found

Saamarthya Foundation works closely with Anganwadis, the government-run early childhood centres that serve children from low-income communities across Hyderabad. Over several months before this campaign launched, Anganwadi workers went door to door in their communities, speaking directly with parents, recording observations, and encouraging families to attend developmental screenings organised by Saamarthya. Because these workers are trusted by the families they serve, their outreach brought forward children who had never previously been evaluated or supported. Through this process, 18 children were identified as needing urgent developmental therapy, with conditions including autism, cerebral palsy, and global developmental delay.

What the Sobati Project delivered

With ₹63,362 reaching Saamarthya Foundation, approximately 79 therapy sessions were funded at ₹800 per session. For children referred through Anganwadi centres, all therapy is provided completely free of cost to families. Sessions covered speech therapy to build communication skills, motor and occupational therapy to strengthen physical development, and cognitive development support to help children engage at home and in school. Alongside direct therapy, Saamarthya's Open Door Policy brought parents into the process, equipping them with practical strategies to reinforce therapy skills between appointments. That parent involvement means the impact of each funded session extends well beyond the session itself.

Why early intervention matters

Without early support, developmental milestones for children with conditions like autism or cerebral palsy can be delayed or missed in ways that become harder to address over time. Research shows that 1 in 8 children in India live with neurodevelopmental disorders, and that even when children are identified, most never receive consistent therapy. The Sobati Project addresses both of those gaps: identifying children through community trust, and then delivering care reliably and without cost to the families who need it most. Even a few months of consistent therapy can meaningfully shift a child's ability to communicate, move, and participate in daily life.

Thank you

Navya Nagothu, an 11th-grade student at the International School of Hyderabad, built this campaign because she believed that children who need developmental support should receive it regardless of what their families earn. Donors made that belief into something real. Saamarthya Foundation will continue to provide updates on how these children progress. If you gave to this campaign, you helped ensure that 18 children had access to trained therapists, and that 18 families learned how to support their children at home. That is what this campaign did.

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