For the four children whom he had virtually given up on have evolved into disciplined, well-groomed talented youngsters winning national scholarships and awards in painting while their physically able siblings have taken to drugs or other vices. ``When I brought them here, it was like a load off my shoulders but it has turned out to be a blessing in disguise,'' says Sema.

The institute, run by Yanger Walling, a trained psychologist for the handicapped, is perhaps the only institution of its kind in the insurgency-ravaged state. Beginning with a rented room in downtown Dimapur in 1987, it is today a modest residential complex spread over 18 hectares along Thansari river. It holds classes for regular schooling and provides vocational training.

``I work among people who believed that the deaf were eithermentally handicapped or possessed by demons. They were kept as slaves at home and considered to be a curse from God,'' says Walling, founder-principal of the institute. ``They were left to roam on the streets and subjected to mockery and teasing. The fact that the deaf can be educated, let alone live a normal life, was unknown to the people,'' says Walling.

The school has classes from nursery to Class X. The first batch of students successfully passed out this year, becoming the first deaf matriculates in the history of Nagaland. The institute aims at overall development physical, emotional, spiritual, moral and social of the deaf, says Walling.

At the vocational training centre, children are taught knitting, cutting and tailoring, weaving, cane work, woodcraft, bead work, jute work, card-making, painting and screen printing. Many of their products have found a market not only in the country but also in the US, particularly cards.

The institute also trains teachers and helps rehabilitate the deafchildren after they pass out. Deft in sign language, these students are active and undeterred by their handicap. ``They are adept at bargaining and want to explore everything. The world has changed for them,'' says Tainla, a teacher at the school.

``Initially the society would not accept the potential of the deaf and therefore was reluctant to give them any moral or material support. Their parents were unable to meet their basic needs, such as books and clothing, and the beginning was tough,'' recalls Walling.