The Disability Sector face huge discrimination and unfavourable conditions at grassroots level

The yearly observance of the World Disability Day for persons with Disabilities was proclaimed in 1992, by the  HYPERLINK "https://undocs.org/A/RES/47/3"United Nations General Assembly resolution 47/3. The commemoration of the day aims to promote an understanding of disability and extend support for the safeguard of rights & ensure well-being of persons with disabilities. The day gives us opportunity to create inclusion of persons with disabilities in every aspect of Social, Cultural, Economic & political life.

India ratified UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities in October 2007. Thus  the Disability Act passed in 1995 was replaced by the Rights of Persons with Disability Act 2016 enacted by the Parliament of India. The whole process from 1992 to 2024, that is from charity to developmental model is to empower and ensure overall development of persons with disabilities. The main aim to commemorate/celebrate the International day of persons with disabilities is to aware and sensitise stakeholders to empower the disability sector by the safeguarding rights of persons with disabilities and providing the access to education, employment & other services with dignity and respect. 

Jammu & Kashmir Government has also been playing a vital role in empowering the Disability Sector. Composite Regional Centre has been a key institute that exclusively works for the development of disability sector. The institution has been creating manpower for the educational and rehabilitation services of persons with disabilities. In addition it has been implementing the ADIP scheme since 2000. The institution needs attention from Government to strengthen its infrastructure and make administrative reforms by posting full time Director and administrative officer in the Institution.

The Government of J&K has been providing 4% reservation in jobs through recruiting agencies like JK PSC and JKSSB. But there are so many lacunae including the charging of form fee which otherwise is exempted under DOPT order N0: 36035/2/2017-Esst (Res) Dated 23/08/2019. In addition the age relaxation needs to be extended to 48 years in case of Disability. The waiting list should be also created for disability posts which otherwise is not created in selection lists thus discouraging the aspirants with disabilities. The extra time and writer facilities during competitive exams has also been a challenge for persons with disabilities. Recruiting agencies sometimes provide scribes that have qualification but are not in a position to narrate questions to aspirants with disabilities. There are scribe rules formulated by Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment 34-02/2015-DD-III, Dated: 29^th of August 2018. The implementation of the notification needs proper attention from stake holders.

The Government of J&K has taken best initiative to appoint nodal officers for redressal of grievances of persons with disabilities in all administrative departments. The implementation of such orders needs proper attention from the administrative secretaries of all the departments. Some officers have been transferred from one department to another thus nodal officers don’t exist. The new officials taking charge after transfer shall know that they have been holding the charge of nodal officers for disability affairs.

Under S.O : 92, in light of Section 84 of RPWD Act – 2016, The Department of Law, Government of J&K has notified that in every District Court the Additional Sessions Judge has been assigned the duty of special courts for disability affairs and implementation of Rights of Persons with Disability act 2016. The Disability Sector face huge discrimination and unfavourable conditions at grassroots level. The access to services and access to justice system is a very huge challenge for the Disability Sector. All the Honourable District Courts should organise awareness programmes among persons with Disabilities. The state legal services authority and district legal services authorities should actively organise such programmes of awareness and sensitisation and additional district session courts should hear and redress the issues of Disability.

The Reservation for Persons with Disabilities should be vertically fixed and removed from horizontal directions and fixed on vertical column as fixed for other categories. As J&K Cabinet has recently decided to establish a three-member sub-committee of Ministers to take a holistic view of the reservation issue. They will review past actions, including recent Supreme Court directions, and evaluate whether the government’s steps are aligned with those directives. Thus Disability sector reservation also needs to be reviewed so that most deserving category that has been neglected from years can be given due as per their challenges. In most of the cases the reservation is given to underprivileged categories but extending reservation on empathetic basis to persons with disabilities is a social responsibility.  Persons with disabilities cannot do hard manual labour but can perform well if equipped with education and skill. The disability sector is most deserving. We should get 6% vertical reservation in jobs and our upper age limit for seeking jobs should be 48 years. Otherwise we will suffer till we exist. 

Under Integrated social security scheme the persons with disabilities get cash assistance of rupees 1000/- under direct transfer benefit through bank accounts. It doesn’t cater all the needs of persons with severe disabilities. Various persons with disabilities have high support needs. They depend on catheters, urine bags, dressings for wounds, bed sheets, ointments, antibiotics and other course medicines to treat epilepsy and other psychiatric ailments. In various states and union territories like Goa, Delhi, Maharashtra, Tilangana, Andra Pradesh, Orissa etc. the social security pension for persons with disabilities is 5000 to 15000. The rising prices have made our lives miserable.  The government of J&K should immediately announce 6000 rupees per month social security pension in favour of persons with disabilities so that miseries because of financial constrains end soon. 

Government of J&K has started e-governance for every department but there is no separate column for the persons with disabilities. Every form and scheme should include persons with disabilities in order to create an inclusion.  There should be a column about that Disability so that persons with disabilities are catered and given the reservations and benefits.

Government of J&K has designed Advisory Board for persons with disabilities but the meetings of advisory board are not happening. The advisory board meetings should happen at regular intervals. National Trust Act 1999 has been implemented in J&K but local level committees have not been formulated in all the districts. The meetings are not happening in time thus persons facing Autism, cerebral palsy, mental disabilities and multiple disabilities have been facing difficulties. Various schemes under National Trust Act if implemented well will minimize the sufferings of persons with intellectual disabilities and their rights will be safeguarded. 

Javed Ahmad Tak, disability rights activist, is a Padma Shri awardee.