The Indian Church’s campaign for this Lenten season plans to reach out to some 10,000 people with disabilities, helping them with care, support, and devices for assistance, say officials. Cari-tas India, the social service wing of the national bishops’ forum, on March 9 launched the national campaign in New Delhi, promi-sing to collaborate with the Delhi Archdiocese and Conference of Religious India, the national forum of men and women reli-gious congregations in the count-ry. The initiative “aims to support 10,000 persons with disabilities through early detection, care and support, assistive devices, and livelihood opportunities” Patrick Hansda, Caritas India’s public. relations officer, told on Mar 10. Catholic Church communities across the globe launch campaigns to raise funds and create aware-ness on social issues during Lent, a seven-week period of prayer and abstinence that begins on Ash Wednesday and leads to Easter. Archbishop Anil J. T. Couto of Delhi opened the Indian Church’s campaign, which Caritas will execute in collaboration with Chetanalaya (Hindi for ‘abode of awareness’), the social service wing of the archdiocese.” It is our firm hope that people will be inspired by this campaign in their own context, reaching out to those marginalized or rejected by socie-ty,” Archbishop Couto said while launching the campaign. Handsa said that since the archdiocese is “already rendering the service on disabilities, Caritas India collabo-rated with it.” He said they also plan to collaborate with the Con-ference of Religious India ”for the effective reach to the needy.” Members of the conference work in most regions of all 28 Indian states and eight federally ruled areas of the country.