Municipal Commissioner of Mumbai  at  MCGM Welfare Centre , Lokhandwala Back road , Lokhandwala  Andheri  West  Mumbai  on 14th Feb 2015.

The School of Autism is an initiative of OAI –  a registered charitable trust founded by parents of the Autism inflicted children . The parents  Mr Dev n Pratima Bajpai , Mr Piyush n Reena Harsora, Mr Girish n  Pradnya  Shenvi who are trustees of OAI , had common vision and objective to make and provide a best in class schooling  facility under one roof  which will cater to the needs of Autistic children to make them independent  and lead a life of respect and dignity in society. The hardships and difficulties which they have undergone  while upbringing their children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD ) have made them come together with a strong resolve to make a meaningful difference to the lives of autistic individuals , their parents and society at large.

OAI through this initiative  has endeavored  to provide pre-vocational and vocational  training to the children in the age group of 12- 25 year who are diagnosed with autism. The school is well equipped with state of art  facility  measuring  more  than 7500 sq. feet  which will provide various therapies like Occupational therapy for improving the Sensory integration and behavior management  , Music n Dance therapy  ,  to engage in meaningful Pre-vocational n Vocational skills in art and craft , computer skills, daily kitchen n cooking activity , gardening ,  yoga and physical training indoor and outdoor activity viz cycling, skating  etc. through well thought out Individual  need based educational programme ( IEP’s ) , Applied Behavioural  analysis ( ABA )  by  well qualified  experience trained  staff of Clinical psychologist , Occupational therapists , Special Educators and care givers.

The institute has future plans not only as a day care centre but also as respite centre and residential facility which is self contained  and has provision of rendering holistic solution including accommodation for parents and teachers.

Autism Spectrum Disorder ( ASD ) is a lifelong developmental disorder that manifests at an early stage and affects the way a person communicates and relates to people around, lacks social skills , unable to make sense of things around them. The incidence of Autism has increased manifold in the last decade. From 1 in 10,000  a decade ago  it is now estimated  1 in less than 100. There is a huge need gap on account of lack of adequate schools and infrastructure to cater to the needs of individuals on the spectrum.

OAI with MCGM’s support has made a humble beginning to this need gap requirement and is committed to serve a large number of children who are on spectrum, need support in learning self-help and vocational skills.