Ward 9 of General Hospital rings in Xmas

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The cake was fluffy and Sharada, an elderly inmate of Ward 9 of General, Hospital, flashed a smile as she had a bite of it.
Chocolates, carols and the Santa were to follow the Christmas celebration organized jointly by the Centre for Gandhian Studies, University of Kerala and Evan Business School, Pongumoodu, on Monday.
The B-school students also distributed new clothes to the inmates, which they had bought after saving from their pocket money."We could bring smiles and feel really happy about it," said Aparna P S, a student of Evan Business School.
Muneera Parveen, another student from the college, said that they cut down their expenses to make the day happen.
The ward, where homeless patients are treated, now houses around 70 people, mostly elderly men and women nursing various ailments and abandoned by their family. Hospital superintendent Dr Fazeelathu Beevi inaugurated the celebrations tilted 'Christmas Sneha Sangamam' by cutting the cake.
A 17-member carol group from St Judes Church, Killipalam, led by Fr Jacob Stellus, who have been performing carols for the inmates for the last three years, crooned a new set of songs on the occasion.
An elderly woman, whom the caretakers have named 'Lajjawati', clapped to the rhythm of carols and sang in her Bihari dialects.
"Christmas celebration for the inmates is arranged every year by the Centre for Gandhian Studies with the permission and support of the hospital superintendent. This time a group of 12 MBA students with their faculty A P Prejish from Evan Business School also expressed their wish to be a part of it," said J M Rahim, coordinator at Centre for Gandhian Studies.