News & Announcement
2nd Consultation on Draft State Aftercare Guidelines for Care Leavers held in Gangtok
Gangtok, Sept 19th (IPR): The Women, Child, Senior Citizen & Divyangjan Welfare Department (WCSC&DWD), Government of Sikkim, under the Sikkim INSPIRES Programme, organised the 2nd Consultation on Aftercare Guidelines (Support for Care Leavers) at a local hotel in Gangtok, today.
The inaugural session was chaired by Commissioner-cum-Secretary, WCSC&DWD, Mr Jigme D Bhutia. He was accompanied by Special Secretary, WCSC&DWD, Ms Bandana Rai, Project Director, Sikkim INSPIRES, Ms Rohini Pradhan, District Collector, Namchi, Ms Anupa Tamling, and District Collector, Soreng, Mr Dhiraj Subedi.
The consultation had the presence of senior officials from various government departments, District Administrations, police, civil society organisations, representatives from Udayan Care and Care Leaver Association of Sikkim (CLAS) and other stakeholders to deliberate on the draft guidelines and provide inputs towards developing a comprehensive and context-specific aftercare framework for young people transitioning out of institutional care.
Delivering the keynote address, Commissioner-cum-Secretary, WCSC&DWD, Mr Jigme D Bhutia, highlighted the need for a structured support system for individuals transitioning from institutional care to independent living. He stated that while systems are in place to provide care and protection to vulnerable children, an important question remains as to what happens when they leave the formal care system.
Mr Bhutia stressed that the proposed guidelines should go beyond being a policy document and translate into practical and implementable measures on the ground. He called for clear administrative mechanisms, defined roles for concerned departments and effective modalities for implementation, while emphasising the need for all stakeholders to understand the importance of aftercare support.
He also highlighted the importance of incorporating the experiences of care leavers, research organisations and other stakeholders into the framework. He added that the consultation process should help ensure that the guidelines address the actual social and economic challenges faced by care leavers and result in a document that can guide coordinated action across departments.
Project Director, Sikkim INSPIRES, Ms Rohini Pradhan, highlighted the journey towards developing the draft guidelines, recalling the first consultation on aftercare held in December 2025. She acknowledged the technical support provided by Udayan Care and UNICEF, while adding that the draft had been developed through consultations with care leavers, government departments and other stakeholders.
Ms Pradhan said the document seeks to bring together perspectives from the administration and service providers as well as the lived experiences of care leavers. She stressed that aftercare challenges and opportunities differ across regions and states, making it important for Sikkim to develop a framework that responds to its own circumstances.
She further explained that the aftercare guidelines form part of a larger care and protection system being developed under Sikkim INSPIRES. The proposed Integrated Case Management System (ICMS) is envisaged as a platform to connect vulnerable individuals with relevant services and opportunities, including skill development, higher education, employment, counselling and housing.
Ms Pradhan also highlighted ongoing interventions under Sikkim INSPIRES, including district-level initiatives on social security, childcare and geriatric care, strengthening of mental health services, development of safe spaces for women and youth, and the reintegration of children who have left school. She said the aftercare guidelines would form a component of this wider effort to strengthen care and protection systems in the state.
A reflection and presentation on transitioning support systems for young people transitioning from institutional care was delivered by Ms Ranjana Srivastava of Udayan Care. She traced the organisation's engagement with aftercare issues and highlighted the importance of ensuring a smooth transition from institutional care to independent living rather than treating the attainment of 18 years as the end of institutional support.
Speaking about Udayan Care, she informed that the team has been working on care and protection, education, skilling, livelihood, advocacy and research for over three decades and has supported aftercare-related initiatives in several states. She appreciated the proactive engagement of the Government of Sikkim in taking forward the aftercare agenda and expressed confidence that the consultation would further strengthen the draft guidelines.
Providing the care-leaver perspective, President, Care Leaver Association of Sikkim (CLAS), Mr Bhawani S Sharma, emphasised that the experiences and aspirations of care leavers must form an integral part of the aftercare framework.
He highlighted the challenges young people face upon leaving Child Care Institutions, including access to higher education, employment, housing, healthcare, financial management, legal awareness and other aspects of independent living. He said that timely support and opportunities can significantly influence the transition to adulthood.
Mr Sharma said CLAS seeks to work constructively with the government, Sikkim INSPIRES, WCSC&DWD and other departments in strengthening aftercare systems. He stressed that care leavers should not remain merely beneficiaries of government programmes, but should be recognised as skilled professionals, entrepreneurs, responsible citizens and potential future leaders.
He called for greater participation of CLAS in the aftercare framework and said care leavers should be treated as partners in developing solutions based on lived experience.
Among the suggestions put forward were recognition of CLAS as a stakeholder in aftercare policy, development of coordinated support for housing, employment and other essential services, and mechanisms for greater participation of care leavers in policy implementation and support systems.
The inaugural session concluded with a vote of thanks delivered by Joint Secretary, MVS/WCSC&DWD, Ms Manisha Cintury.
Earlier, the welcome address was delivered by Special Secretary, WCSC&DWD, Ms Bandana Rai.
The inaugural session was followed by two technical sessions focusing on the key features of the draft guideline, experiences from other states and detailed group deliberations on priority areas.
The first plenary technical session, moderated by Dr Gurneet Kalra from Udayan Care, focused on the key features of Sikkim’s Draft Aftercare Guidelines and learnings from other states. The session included a presentation and interactive quiz on the draft guidelines, followed by an open discussion on aftercare guidelines notified in other states and the approaches adopted by them.
The second technical session, facilitated by Mr Prabhat Kumar from Udayan Care, involved group work on key areas of the draft guideline. Participants deliberated on their respective areas and presented their observations and recommendations.
The technical discussions focused on consolidating key strategies and inputs towards the finalisation, adoption and implementation of the State Aftercare Guidelines.
The session also outlined the way forward and included a feedback exercise to capture participants’ views on the consultation and the proposed framework.
The inaugural session was chaired by Commissioner-cum-Secretary, WCSC&DWD, Mr Jigme D Bhutia. He was accompanied by Special Secretary, WCSC&DWD, Ms Bandana Rai, Project Director, Sikkim INSPIRES, Ms Rohini Pradhan, District Collector, Namchi, Ms Anupa Tamling, and District Collector, Soreng, Mr Dhiraj Subedi.
The consultation had the presence of senior officials from various government departments, District Administrations, police, civil society organisations, representatives from Udayan Care and Care Leaver Association of Sikkim (CLAS) and other stakeholders to deliberate on the draft guidelines and provide inputs towards developing a comprehensive and context-specific aftercare framework for young people transitioning out of institutional care.
Delivering the keynote address, Commissioner-cum-Secretary, WCSC&DWD, Mr Jigme D Bhutia, highlighted the need for a structured support system for individuals transitioning from institutional care to independent living. He stated that while systems are in place to provide care and protection to vulnerable children, an important question remains as to what happens when they leave the formal care system.
Mr Bhutia stressed that the proposed guidelines should go beyond being a policy document and translate into practical and implementable measures on the ground. He called for clear administrative mechanisms, defined roles for concerned departments and effective modalities for implementation, while emphasising the need for all stakeholders to understand the importance of aftercare support.
He also highlighted the importance of incorporating the experiences of care leavers, research organisations and other stakeholders into the framework. He added that the consultation process should help ensure that the guidelines address the actual social and economic challenges faced by care leavers and result in a document that can guide coordinated action across departments.
Project Director, Sikkim INSPIRES, Ms Rohini Pradhan, highlighted the journey towards developing the draft guidelines, recalling the first consultation on aftercare held in December 2025. She acknowledged the technical support provided by Udayan Care and UNICEF, while adding that the draft had been developed through consultations with care leavers, government departments and other stakeholders.
Ms Pradhan said the document seeks to bring together perspectives from the administration and service providers as well as the lived experiences of care leavers. She stressed that aftercare challenges and opportunities differ across regions and states, making it important for Sikkim to develop a framework that responds to its own circumstances.
She further explained that the aftercare guidelines form part of a larger care and protection system being developed under Sikkim INSPIRES. The proposed Integrated Case Management System (ICMS) is envisaged as a platform to connect vulnerable individuals with relevant services and opportunities, including skill development, higher education, employment, counselling and housing.
Ms Pradhan also highlighted ongoing interventions under Sikkim INSPIRES, including district-level initiatives on social security, childcare and geriatric care, strengthening of mental health services, development of safe spaces for women and youth, and the reintegration of children who have left school. She said the aftercare guidelines would form a component of this wider effort to strengthen care and protection systems in the state.
A reflection and presentation on transitioning support systems for young people transitioning from institutional care was delivered by Ms Ranjana Srivastava of Udayan Care. She traced the organisation's engagement with aftercare issues and highlighted the importance of ensuring a smooth transition from institutional care to independent living rather than treating the attainment of 18 years as the end of institutional support.
Speaking about Udayan Care, she informed that the team has been working on care and protection, education, skilling, livelihood, advocacy and research for over three decades and has supported aftercare-related initiatives in several states. She appreciated the proactive engagement of the Government of Sikkim in taking forward the aftercare agenda and expressed confidence that the consultation would further strengthen the draft guidelines.
Providing the care-leaver perspective, President, Care Leaver Association of Sikkim (CLAS), Mr Bhawani S Sharma, emphasised that the experiences and aspirations of care leavers must form an integral part of the aftercare framework.
He highlighted the challenges young people face upon leaving Child Care Institutions, including access to higher education, employment, housing, healthcare, financial management, legal awareness and other aspects of independent living. He said that timely support and opportunities can significantly influence the transition to adulthood.
Mr Sharma said CLAS seeks to work constructively with the government, Sikkim INSPIRES, WCSC&DWD and other departments in strengthening aftercare systems. He stressed that care leavers should not remain merely beneficiaries of government programmes, but should be recognised as skilled professionals, entrepreneurs, responsible citizens and potential future leaders.
He called for greater participation of CLAS in the aftercare framework and said care leavers should be treated as partners in developing solutions based on lived experience.
Among the suggestions put forward were recognition of CLAS as a stakeholder in aftercare policy, development of coordinated support for housing, employment and other essential services, and mechanisms for greater participation of care leavers in policy implementation and support systems.
The inaugural session concluded with a vote of thanks delivered by Joint Secretary, MVS/WCSC&DWD, Ms Manisha Cintury.
Earlier, the welcome address was delivered by Special Secretary, WCSC&DWD, Ms Bandana Rai.
The inaugural session was followed by two technical sessions focusing on the key features of the draft guideline, experiences from other states and detailed group deliberations on priority areas.
The first plenary technical session, moderated by Dr Gurneet Kalra from Udayan Care, focused on the key features of Sikkim’s Draft Aftercare Guidelines and learnings from other states. The session included a presentation and interactive quiz on the draft guidelines, followed by an open discussion on aftercare guidelines notified in other states and the approaches adopted by them.
The second technical session, facilitated by Mr Prabhat Kumar from Udayan Care, involved group work on key areas of the draft guideline. Participants deliberated on their respective areas and presented their observations and recommendations.
The technical discussions focused on consolidating key strategies and inputs towards the finalisation, adoption and implementation of the State Aftercare Guidelines.
The session also outlined the way forward and included a feedback exercise to capture participants’ views on the consultation and the proposed framework.
