MITHI: The Sindh cabinet has approved a Rs477 million grant for the second phase of the SOS Children’s Villages being constructed in Tharparkar, expected to become operational by mid-2026, said speakers at a press conference held in Mithi on Friday.

The press conference was hosted by Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) divisional president Mirpurkhas and MNA from Tharparkar Dr Mahesh Malani at his residence in Mithi. It was attended by former senator Javed Jabbar, volunteer chairman of SOS Children’s Villages of Sindh, Sindh SOS operation director Zainab Khokhar, Tharparkar Deputy Commissioner Abdul Haleem Jagirani and PPP MPA Faqir Sher Muhammad Bilalani.

Javed Jabbar thanked Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari and Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah for supporting the project and appreciated Dr Malani’s role in securing the funding.

He described the Thar SOS project as a model of interfaith harmony, noting that both a mosque and a temple were being built within the village.

Mr Jabbar said each SOS Children’s Village comprised of family-based homes where orphaned children, including “natural and social orphans”, were raised in a secure environment. Each home is headed by a trained woman who acts as a mother to the children.

After the age of 12, boys are shifted to a youth home, while girls continue to live in the village until adulthood, education or marriage.

Published in Dawn, December 27th, 2025