Under its inclusive development program, Ambuja Manovikas Kendra in Ropar, Punjab empowered 15 children with autism in improving their sensory processing abilities through a recently set up Sensory Integration Room. Established following a fund-raising campaign in 2024, the Sensory Integration Room is designed to offer controlled environment for children with autism to improve sensory regulation and communication, while helping children with cerebral palsy and intellectual disabilities enhance motor skills, body awareness, and sensory processing.

The initiative is a step towards strengthening inclusive and sustainable rural development by Ambuja Foundation.

Ambuja Manovikas Kendra (AMK) is located in a grand 2.5-acre campus that offers a comprehensive range of services in special education, therapy and home-based rehabilitation tailored to students with special needs. The newly added sensory integration room is designed and equipped with bubble tubes and optical fibers, lighting effects, auditory stimuli, a wall climber, a ball pool, textured tactile and learning wall panels, to stimulate the senses of vision, olfaction, gustatory, hearing, touch, vestibular, proprioception and interception.

Outdoor sensory pathways, along with specialized therapeutic and educational aids, have been thoughtfully integrated in the room to support the development of the students with autism. These interventions enhance sensory input processing and integration, enabling children to respond more effectively and adaptively to everyday stimuli.

To further strengthen engagement and support functional outcomes at the room, sensory engagement tools have been progressively incorporated to channel sensory inputs into purposeful activities, thereby enhancing students’ participation, self-regulation, and overall learning outcomes. These include prompts and picture cards and structured workbooks, fidget tools and sensory toys, as well as bubble guns, slimes, and squeeze toys. Much like teaching-learning materials (TLM) for educators, these resources are essential for effective instruction, helping simplify tasks and create a more engaging and accessible learning environment.

Talking about the use of the Sensory Integration Room at Ambuja Manovikas Kendra, Mr. Chandrakant Kumbhani, CEO, Ambuja Foundation, said, “Ambuja Foundation is committed to the development of all the segments of society. Through Ambuja Manovikas Kendra, we have been empowering differently abled children for the past 25 years, helping them acquire essential life skills and fostering their journey toward self-reliance. We set up the Sensory Integration Room to empower the children suffering from autism by providing a structured and controlled environment where these kids receive sensory input in a regulated manner and improve their performance.”

About Ambuja Foundation

Ambuja Foundation is an independent, pan-India development organization, committed to generating prosperous rural communities. We believe in the vast, untapped potential of rural communities and the unstoppable power of the people that live there. With investments in water, agriculture, skills, women, health and education, we enable ‘livelihoods’ as a pathway to unleashing that potential. Partnering with like-minded corporates, governments and others, we work collaboratively with communities to solve pressing community problems – empowering local people to be the catalysts and drivers of change. And over almost 3 decades of work, we have seen a complete transformation in the remote geographies in which we work. We are committed to expanding our footprint and impact of our work even further, through partnerships – building many more sustainable, prosperous rural communities, and revitalizing rural India as the backbone of this country.