Says Beggars' Home Superintendent Balraj Singh Sarvaiyya, ``All we learnt was she resided in Dankuni Badam Talla near Calcutta. So, after her term ended we decided to help her return home. One does not know if she'll reach there or lose her way again. But at least she'll be in her own land where people speak her tongue''.

Anita's story may have reached a ``happy ending''. But an uncertain future awaits 50-odd inmates of the Beggars' Home, where a peculiar problem is thwarting attempts to relocate and rehabilitate them -- non-communication.

Each detained destitute here has a story to tell. But a majority of the case files in the office of Superintendent Balraj Singh Sarvaiyya reveal blank pages save an occasional mention of a name, possible age and a two-line description of the inmate's behavioural pattern.

The reason? While a majority of the men and women demonstrate incoherent speech patterns due to minor mental illnesses, many speak languages incomprehensible both to Sarvaiyya and his staff.

Either found begging or moving in a state of delirium at railway stations, roadsides, temple precincts, the destitutes are remanded here for a year following the district magistrate's orders. Serving his or her term, each inmate receives routine medical attendance, instruction on maintaining self hygiene and most importantly, some form of vocational training to help the inmate fend for himself or herself after the release. At the term-end, the inmates are released wearing clean clothes with Rs 350 in hand.

Unfortunately, few links with the inmates' families are established or little information on their background traced during their detention due to non-comprehension of their speech.

Says Sarvaiyya, ``About 60 per cent of the detainees here hail from outside Gujarat, with a majority of the men being from Uttar Pradesh and women from South India. We have no problem communicating with inmates who speak either in Gujarati, Hindi or Marathi but there are many from North East, West Bengal and Southern states who speak or understand no other language but their own''. He observes that while most of the inmates are mentally disturbed, only one out of every 10 is able to state his or her correct address and details about family and friends.

The duties of maintaining diaries, case files and registers regarding the inmates, including redressal of their grievances and attempt to establish contacts with their parents, guardians or families has been entrusted with the Probation Officers, also known as Case Workers of the home. The two posts of case workers at the Warasia home, however, have been lying vacant for two years now.

The case files are maintained, but by students of the Master in Social Work course of the M S University, who visit the home on a weekly basis as part of their field assignments. A task that would ideally entail constant and patient interrogation of each inmate on a daily basis is being carried out for a couple of hours once in a week.

However, the efforts have not altogether been unrewarding. Queries by the students and Sarvaiyya have resulted in some inmates recollecting the names of their villages or districts though the addresses, by and large, have been found incomplete or nonexistent. Says Sarvaiyya, ``We post letters to the stated addresses, but most of the mail comes back to us undelivered. Some families have been contacted but these are rare cases''.

Sarvaiyya stresses on the need for an interpreter. ``We manage to get assistance from friends and acquaintances familiar with the other languages. But conversing with these inmates needs time and patience and few are willing to voluntarily come to our assistance. Trained social workers can help but few would want to work without some monetary returns. Even the non governmental organisations are by and large unaware of our work,'' he says. Any takers?