She found him in a stinking drain last August. A baby, just twenty four hours old, lying there, parts of his eyes and nose bitten off by rats and worms.

Mala, 48, widowed, picked him up, and named him Srinivasa.  She was then told she couldn't adopt him because she had two grown-up children of her own.  So she tried in her own way to screen prospective parents who showed up at the hospital where Srinivasa was recovering. "A lot of people came to the hospital saying `we will take him', I said 'ok if thats what is legal'.. they would look at him through the glass and go away," Mala says.

Mala asked her daughter,  Bhavya, who is married, to adopt Srinivasa for her.   The family says it can't remember what their house was like without Srinivasa. The baby spends a fair amount of time at The Narayana Nethralaya Hospital where doctors have successfully dealt with a series of challenges.

A severe infection of the eyes, a damaged cornea, no nose to hold the glasses prescribed for him.   Finally, a week ago, Srinivasa receieved an eye transplant from a Bangalorean who donated his eyes before he died.   "In our country, there are 2 million people waiting for corneal transplant, there is no other way we can give them sight but somebody needs to donate their eyes. instead of burning or burying, if that precious tissue can be donated, two people can be given sight," says Bhujang Shetty, Chairman, Narayana Nethralaya.

Srinivasa's eyes light up when he sees Mala. As a Class 1V employee at a college, she doesn't know how she will afford her plans for him. A great school, followed by medical college.  Others will help, she says, shrugging. After all, Srinivasa and she have defeated a series of odds together since they first met.

In case you want to help Mala:

Mala
State Bank of Mysore, Nagarabhavi Branch, Bangalore.
Account no. 64017837353.