PHYSICALLY CHALLENGED

WHO IS A PHYSICALLY CHALLENGED PERSON?

A person is considered ‘handicapped’ or ‘physically challenged’ when he is not an ordinary person with all limbs. A disabled person is one who suffers from the loss or impairment of a limp or deformity in physical or mental capability whether due to nature's foul play or an unexpected unfortunate accident. Disabled persons are of two types. (i) Physically handicapped (ii) Mentally ill. The condition of disability may arise by birth or in accident. Polio, blindness, deafness, dumbness and mental illness may occur by birth or by other incidents or due to ill health. Handicappedness is measured by medical persons in various degrees while they give certificate to the handicapped person.

It is estimated that about twelve millions Indians about 1.8 per cent of Indian population have at least one disability or the other. About 10 per cent of the handicapped are having more than one type of physical disability. There is growing awareness both in the Government and society about the need to reach out to the disabled people to enable them to become self-sufficient and independent.

The Word “DISABILITY” implies

1. Inability to function normally, physically or mentally; incapacity.

2. Anything that causes disability.

As defined by the Federal Government: “inability to engage in any substantial gainful activity by reason

of any medically determinable physical or mental impairment which can be expected to last or has

lasted for a continuous period of not less than 12 months.”

According to the World Health Organization (WHO) rehabilitation guidelines, “impairment of an individual as it affects his or her role in life, such as an inability to work because of a health condition.”

The United Nations uses a definition of disability as:

Impairment: Any loss of abnormality of psychological or anatomical structure or function.

Disability: Any restriction or lack (resulting from an impairment) of ability to perform an activity in the

manner or within the range considered normal for a human being.

Handicap: A disadvantage for a given individual, resulting from an impairment or disability, that limits or

prevents the fulfillment of a role that is normal, depending on age, sex, social and cultural factors, for

that individual. Handicap is therefore a function of the relationship between disabled persons and their

environment. It occurs when they encounter cultural, physical or social barriers which prevent their

access to the various systems of society that are available to other citizens. Thus, handicap is the loss or

limitation of opportunities to take part in the life of the community on an equal level with others.

IN INDIA

According to THE PERSONS WITH DISABILITIES (Equal Opportunities, protection Of Rights And Full

Participation) ACT, 1995

“PERSON WITH DISABILITY" means a person suffering from not less than forty per cent of any disability as certified by a medical authority;

“DISABILITY" means -

i. blindness; ii. low vision;

iii. leprosy-cured; iv. hearing impairment; v. locomotive disability;

vi. mental retardation; vii. mental illness;

i. "blindness" refers to a condition where a person suffers from any of the following conditions, namely:-

a. total absence of sight; or

b. visual acuity not exceeding 6/60 or 20/200 in the better eye with correcting lenses; or

c. Limitation of the field of vision subtending an angle of 20 degree or worse.

ii. "person with low vision" means a person with impairment of visual functioning even after treatment or standard refractive correction but who uses or is potentially capable of using vision for the planning or execution of a task with appropriate assistive device.

iii. "Leprosy cured person" means any person who has been cured of leprosy but is suffering from -

a. loss of sensation in hands or feet as well as loss of sensation and paresis in the eye and eye-lid but with no manifest deformity;

b. manifest deformity and paresis but having sufficient mobility in their hands and feet to enable them to engage in normal economic activity;

c. extreme physical deformity as well as advanced age which prevents him from undertaking any gainful occupation, and the expression "leprosy cured" shall be construed accordingly;

iv. "Hearing impairment" means loss of sixty decibels or more in the better ear in the conversational

range of frequencies.

v. "locomotive disability" means disability of the bones, joints or muscles leading to substantial

restriction of the movement of the limbs or any form of cerebral palsy.

vi. “Mental illness" means any mental disorder other than mental retardation;

vii. "Mental retardation" means a condition of arrested or incomplete development of mind of a person which is specially characterized by sub normality of intelligence.

PROBLEMS FACED BY THE PHYSICALLY HANDICAPPED PERSONS:

(1) Physically handicapped persons like blind & insane persons cannot go from place to place alone and

they require personal assistance.

(2) They require medical assistance to face their challenges and to undergo major operations and

treatment.

(3) They cannot stand in Q along with other persons.

(4) They cannot compete with other persons to secure seats in educational institutions and

employment.

(5) They cannot earn their livelihood due to unemployment.

CURRENT ISSUES & STATUS

Defining Disability

In India, different definitions of disability are introduced for various purposes and, as such, they have been based on various criteria. No single standard exists in India in order to evaluate disability.

In common parlance, different terms such as disabled, handicapped, crippled, physically challenged are used inter-changeably.

Census of India 2001 document mentioned "Defining and measuring disability is a complex issue and it is not easy to communicate these concepts during the census process, in which only a limited amount of questioning time is possible to be spent with a household for obtaining detailed information on every individual."

With regard to definitions adopted by PWD Act Census of India stated "the concepts and definitions of disabilities coupled with measuring its extent and its types contained in the PWD Act, 1995 were found to be extremely difficult to canvass even in normal circumstances assuming people had time, were willing and forthcoming to share this information and there was an expert investigator to elicit this information."

Census therefore used its own version of definitions of disabilities Census of India defines five types of disabilities viz. seeing, speech, hearing, movement, and mental. Seeing disability includes a person who cannot see at all (has no perception of light) or has blurred vision even with the help of spectacles will be treated as visually disabled.

A person with proper vision only in one eye will also be treated as visually disabled. Where a person may have blurred vision and had no occasion to test whether her/his eyesight would improve by using spectacles. Such persons would be treated as visually disabled. Speech disabled means a person will be recorded as having speech disability, if she/he is dumb.

Similarly persons whose speech is not understood by a listener of normal comprehension and hearing, she/he will be considered to having speech disability. Persons who stammer but whose speech is comprehensible will not be classified as disabled by speech.

Hearing disability includes a person who cannot hear at all (deaf), or can hear only loud sounds will be considered as having hearing disability. A person who is able to hear, using hearing aid will not be considered as disabled under this category. If a person cannot hear through one ear but her/his other ear is functioning normally, should be considered having hearing disability.

A person, who lacks limbs or is unable to use the limbs normally, will be considered having movement disability. Absence of a part of a limb like a finger or a toe will not be considered as disability. However, absence of all the fingers or toes or a thumb will make a person disabled by movement. If any part of the body is deformed, the person will also be treated as disabled and covered under this category.

A person, who cannot move herself/himself without the aid of another person or without the aid of stick, etc., will be treated as disabled. Similarly, a person would be treated as disabled in movement if she/he is unable to move or lift or pick up any small article placed near her/him.

A person may not be able to move normally because of problems of joints like arthritis and has to invariable limp while moving, will also be considered to have movement disability. A person who lacks comprehension appropriate to her/his age will be considered as mentally disabled.

This would not mean that if a person is not able to comprehend her/his studies appropriate to her/his age and is failing to qualify her/his examination is mentally disabled. Mentally retarded and insane persons would be treated as mentally disabled. A mentally disabled person may generally depend on her/his family members for performing daily routine.

Types of Disabilities

Census of India 2001 identified five types of disabilities as defined above. Statistics shows total number of disabled in India at 21,906,769 which constitute more than 2 percent of total population.

Disabled in India by types of Disabilities

Types of Disabilities Number of Disabled Percentage

Seeing 10634881 48.55

Speech 1640868 7.49

Hearing 1261722 5.76

Movement 6105477 27.87

Mental 2263821 10.33

Total 21906769 100.00

Source: Census of India 2001

This proportion is lower than estimates of World Health Organization and United Nations according to which around 10 percent of population in underdeveloped and developing countries are disabled.

Classification of disabled in India shows that nearly half total disabled are having seeing disabilities (48.55 percent) followed by movement disabilities (27.87 percent). Ten percent of total disabled are mentally disabled.

Disability in Various Dimensions

Disabilities by Sex

The classification of disabled in different categories by sex shows higher rate of prevalence of

disabilities among males as compared to females, especially in the case of movement and mental

disabilities the proportion of male is much higher as compared to females.

Disabilities by Residence

Classification of disabled by residence shows that majority of disabled are living in the rural areas. 81.07 percent of people with hearing disabilities, 76.24 percent with movement disabilities, and 75.80 percent with speech disabilities reside in rural areas.

Lack of medical facilities, large family size, concentration of medical facilities in urban localities, etc. are the major reasons for this trend. The paradoxical situation here is concentration of organizations working for disabled in urban centers.

Disability and Literacy

Education is very important for all, especially for disabled. Education provides opportunities for employment and advancement.

According to Census of 2001,

1. Literacy level is high among movement disabled as compared to other categories. This is due to the reason that they face only one barrier i.e. mobility in education and they can easily be incorporated in regular school. Neither special teacher nor special books and other facilities are needed for them. Movement barriers can easily be removed by creating ramps in schools.

2. Literacy level is higher in urban areas as compared to rural areas because most of the educational institutions, especially special schools for disabled, are located in urban centers. Non-governmental organizations working for education of disabled are also located in urban centers.

3. Literacy level is low among disabled females as compared to their male counterpart. Lowest literacy rate is observed among rural disabled female. The reason for this kind of trend lies in the social mind setup, especially rural areas, where education among girls is not given important especially if she is disabled. Parents generally hesitate and also worried to send their disabled girls to schools.

4. Among different categories of disabilities, literacy rate is lowest among peoples with mental disabilities because of lack of sufficient educational facilities such as special schools and special teachers for mentally challenged.

Disability and Work

Work is defined by census 2001 as participation in any economically productive activity. Work may be physical or mental in nature. It involves not only actual work but also effective supervision and direction of work. Work may be paid or unpaid.

According to above definition any persons engaged in economic activity whether paid or unpaid is called worker. Disabled people are also classified as worker and non-workers.

Work Participation Rate

Work Participation rate is percentage of workers to total population.

According to Census of 2001,

1. Total work participation rate among disabled is 34.49 percent, 44.81 and 29.55 percent among males and females respectively.

2. Work participation rate is low among females as compared to males and in urban areas as compared to rural areas. High work participation rate in rural areas are due to the fact that agriculture, which is the main occupation in rural areas has a capacity to absorb large chunk of disabled both educated and uneducated.

3. Lowest work participation rate is observed among urban disabled females. One reason for this is that employment opportunities in urban area are male dominated and favors the educated. Low education level among females is main constraint in their employment.

4. Among different categories of disabled, work participation rate is lowest among people with mental disabilities. Lack of education and employment opportunities for mentally disabled along with negative attitude of the employer to employ mentally disabled are reasons for this trend.

Current issues and debates surrounding disability include social and political rights, social inclusion

and citizenship.

In developed countries, the debate has moved beyond a concern about the perceived cost of

maintaining dependent people with disabilities to an effort of finding effective ways to ensure that

people with disabilities can participate in and contribute to society in all spheres of life.

Many are concerned, however, that the greatest need is in developing nations—where the vast bulk of

the estimated 650 million people with disabilities reside. A great deal of work is needed to address

concerns ranging from accessibility and education to self-empowerment and self-supporting

employment and beyond.

However obstacles reside in some countries in getting full employment, also public perception of

disabled people may vary in areas.

According to CRY( CHILD RIGHTS & YOU)

3% of India's children are mentally/physically challenged. 20 out of every 1000 rural children are mentally/physically challenged, compared to 16 out of

every 1000 urban children. Mentally/physially challenged girls are at a particular risk to violence and abuse

CONSTITUTIONAL PROVISIONS & GOVERNMENT POLICIES

Article 15 and 16 of the Indian Constitution expressly prohibits discrimination on the basis of certain specified criteria such as sex, caste and ethnic origin. Disability is not included amongst the list of the prohibited criteria. Consequently legislations which discriminate on the ground of disability were not perceived as patently discriminatory and hence unconstitutional.

IV. Directive Principles of State Policy

ARTICLE 41: Right to work, to education and to public assistance in certain cases -

The State shall, within the limits of its economic capacity and development, make effective provision for

securing the right to work, to education and to public assistance in cases of unemployment, old age,

sickness and disablement, and in other cases of undeserved want.

The Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment is an Indian government ministry. It is responsible for welfare, social justice, and empowerment of disadvantaged and marginalised sections of society, including scheduled castes and scheduled tribes (SC/ST), Other Backward Classes (OBC), the disabled, and the elderly.

The Minister of Social Justice and Empowerment holds cabinet rank as a member of the Council of Ministers. The current minister is Mukul Wasnik, who is assisted by a Minister of State D. Napoleon.

The ministry has five bureaus, each headed by a Joint Secretary: Scheduled Castes Development Bureau; Backward Classes Bureau Coordination, Media, Administration; Disability Bureau; Social Defense (SD) Bureau; and Project, Research, Evaluation and Monitoring Bureau.

National institutes for persons with disabilities o Ali Yavar Jung National Institute for the Hearing Handicapped, Mumbai (AYJNIHH) o Deen Dayal Upadhyay Institute of Physically Handicapped, New Delhi (formerly Institute

for the Physically Handicapped (IPH)) o National Institute for Orthopaedically Handicapped, Kolkata o National Institute of Mentally Handicapped, Secunderabad (NIMH) o National Institute of Social Defence (NISD) o National Institute of Visually Handicapped (NIVH) o Swami Vivekanand National Institute of Rehabilitation Training and Research, Olatpur,

Cuttack and Orissa (NIRTAR)

Public sector undertakings o National Handicapped Finance and Development Corporation (NHFDC) o Artificial Limbs Manufacturing Corporation of India (ALIMCO), Kanpur

Other associated organizations o Chief Commissioner for Disabilities o Dr. Ambedkar Foundation o Dr. Shyama Prasad Mukherjee National Institute for Orthopaedically Handicapped

(formerly National Institute for the Orthopaedically Handicapped (NIOH)) o National Handicapped Finance and Development Corporation (NHFDC) o National Trust for the Welfare of Persons with Autism, Cerebral Palsy, Mental

Retardation and Multiple Disabilities o Officer of the Chief Commissioner for Disabilities o Rehabilitation Council of India (RCI) o Swami Vivekanand National Institute of Rehabilitation, Training and Research

(SVNIRTAR)

Rehabilitation

Rehabilitation of people who are physically challenged is another priority of the Ministry of Social Justice

and Empowerment. Special care is provided to them through District Disability Rehabilitation Centres,

institutes and NGO's. Rehabilitation involves processes to help patients live a decent standard of life

with their handicap.

Rehabilitation for the blind involves learning the sighted guide technique, the use of the white cane, reading and writing the Braille language and performing household chores without sight. They are taught vocational skills in fields where blindness is not a handicap like candle making and other crafts. Some may be provided visual aids.

People who have lost a limb due to a disease or accident receive reconstructive surgery. Later on they may be provided with an artificial leg like a Jaipur foot, a calliper or crutches. They are then taught how to walk with new aid they receive and are given vocational training to help them get a job.

Deaf and Mute people may be recommended surgery or fitted with a hearing aid or ear mould depending on their unique condition. Those who haven't learnt to speak as yet (children below five) are given speech therapy that includes learning the sign language, lip reading and other pointers.

Depending on their situation, a few disabled people may also be prescribed medications and surgery of different types. The rehabilitation process in all cases involves follow up treatment where the patient is rechecked at periodic intervals.

Rehabilitation Council There is a rehabilitation Council set up under the Ministry of Welfare. It prescribes syllabus for the various training programmes, recognized the training institutes and maintains rehabilitation registers. Besides, a number of voluntary organizations such as the Spastics Society of India, Spastics Society of Northern India and the Spastics Society of Eastern India are conducting courses for the resource persons for the special education and training of persons with cerebral palsy. They get grants from the Ministry of Welfare. District Rehabilitation Centers The Ministry of Welfare started the District Rehabilitation Centre Scheme in 1983 for the disabled persons living in rural areas. The scheme envisages comprehensive identification of disabled persons following which restorative, medical, educational, vocational and placement services are arranged for Them. The District Centers work in co-operation with the voluntary agencies & make use of the health and other facilities available at the field level. These centers also encourage Non-Governmental Organizations to provide community awareness; parental counseling and vocational training services.

Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment- Schemes & Programmes

Assistance to Disabled Persons for Purchase / Fitting of Aids and Appliances (ADIP Scheme)

The main objective of the Scheme is to assist the needy disabled persons in procuring durable,

sophisticated and scientifically manufactured, modern, standard aids and appliances that can promote

their physical, social and psychological rehabilitation, by reducing the effects of disabilities and enhance

their economic potential. The aids and appliances supplied under the Scheme must be ISI.

Scheme of National Scholarships for Persons with Disabilities

Under the Scheme of National Scholarships for Persons with Disabilities, every year 500 new

scholarships are awarded for pursuing post matric professional and technical courses of duration more

than one year. However, in respect of students with cerebral palsy, mental retardation, multiple

disabilities and profound or severe hearing impairment, scholarship are awarded for pursuing studies

from IX Std. onwards.

Students with 40% or more disability whose monthly family income does not exceed Rs. 15,000/-are

eligible for scholarship. Financial assistance under the scheme is also given for computer with editing

software for blind/ deaf graduate and postgraduate students pursuing professional courses and for

support access software for cerebral palsied students.

Deendayal Disabled Rehabilitation Scheme to promote Voluntary Action for Persons with Disabilities

(Revised DDRS Scheme)

To facilitate delivery of various services to persons with disabilities by voluntary organizations, the

Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment is administering DDRS scheme and providing grants-in-aid

to NGOs for the following projects:-

i. Vocational Training Centres

ii. Sheltered Workshops

iii. Special Schools for the Persons with Disabilities

iv. Project for Cerebral Palsied Children

v. Project for Pre-School and Early Intervention and Training

vi. Home based Rehabilitation Program / Home Management Programme

vii. Project for Rehabilitation of Leprosy Cured Persons (LCPs)

viii. Project relating to Survey, Identification, Awareness and Sensitization

ix. Project for Community Based Rehabilitation

x. Project for Human Resource Development

xi. Seminars / Workshops / Rural Camps

xii. Project for Legal Literacy, Including Legal Counselling, Legal Aid and Analysis and Evaluation of

Existing Laws

xiii. Environment Friendly and Eco-Promotive Projects for the Handicapped

xiv. Grant for Purchase of Vehicle

xv. Construction of Building

xvi. Grant for Computer

xvii. Project for Low Vision Centres

xviii. Half Way Home for Psycho-Social Rehabilitation of Treated and Controlled Mentally Ill Persons

xix. District Disability Rehabilitation Centres (DDRCs)

Schemes arising out of the Implementation of the Persons with Disabilities (Equal Opportunities,

Protection of Rights and Full Participation) Act, 1995

A number of schemes are being formulated under the Persons with Disabilities (Equal Opportunities

Protection of Rights and full participation) Act, 1995 also. Schemes under implementation at present are

as under:-

a. Incentives to Employers in the Private Sector for Providing Regular Employment to Persons

with Disabilities

A Central Sector Scheme of providing one-lakh jobs per annum to the persons with disabilities,

with a proposed outlay of Rs.1800 crore, during the 11th Plan Period has already been

sanctioned from 1.4.2008 by the Government. Under the Scheme, the Government will make

payment of the employer's contribution to the Employees Provident Fund and Employees State

Insurance for the first three years, as an incentive, in return of employment of persons with

disabilities with monthly wage up to Rs 25000/- per month.

b. Models to promote awareness about accessibility features in public buildings

Funds are being provided to Universities / Administrative Training Centres in the States/UTs and

State Secretariats etc. for installing lifts etc. to provided barrier free access to persons with

disabilities.

c. Composite Regional Centres for Persons with Disabilities (CRCs)

Due to lack of adequate facilities for rehabilitation of Persons with Disabilities, the Ministry has

set up five Composite Regional Centres for Persons with Disabilities at Srinagar, Sundernagar

(Himachal Pradesh), Lucknow, Bhopal and Guwahati to provide both preventive and

promotional aspects of rehabilitation like education, health, employment and vocational

training, research and manpower development, rehabilitation for persons with disabilities etc.

d. District Disability Rehabilitation Centers (DDRCs)

The Ministry with active support of State Governments is facilitating setting up District Disability

Rehabilitation Centers (DDRCs) to provide rehabilitation services to persons with disabilities.

Centres are being set up in unreached and unserved districts of the country in a phased manner.

These centers are to provide services for prevention and early detection, referral for medical

intervention and surgical correction, fitment of artificial aids and appliances, therapeutical

services such as physiotherapy, occupational and speech therapy, provision of training for

acquisition of skills through vocational training, job placement in local industries etc. at district

headquarters as well as through camp approach.

e. Awareness Generation Programme

A pilot project for creation of awareness on prevention and early detection and intervention of

various types of disabilities has been taken up. The project envisages dissemination of

information in rural areas through Anganwadi workers and covers 30 districts (17 in Uttar

Pradesh and 13 in Bihar).

f. Technology Development Projects in Mission Mode

With a view to provide suitable and cost effective aids and appliances through the application of

technology and to increase their employment opportunities and integration in society of the

physically disabled, the above scheme was started during 1990-91. Under the scheme, suitable

R&D projects are identified and funded for developing aids and appliances. The scheme is

implemented through the IITs.

Trust Fund for Empowerment of Persons With Disabilities

The Supreme Court in its order dated 16th April, 2004 in the Civil Appeals No.4655 and 5218 of 2000 had

directed that the banks, who had collected an estimated excess amount of Rs.723.79 crores annually

from the borrowers through rounding off in collection of interest tax, should transfer it to a trust which

would be used for welfare of persons with disabilities. The Court had constituted a Committee under the

chairmanship of Comptroller and Auditor General of India with Finance Secretary and Law Secretary as

members.

The Government of India enacted Disabilities Act providing facilities to handicapped. The Government of India provided the following facilities to disabled persons: (1) For payment of Income Tax, they are allowed to deduct the expenses spent for their assistance up to a fixed amount in the Income Tax Act. (2) For physically handicapped persons, the Railways provided concession rates of tickets to them allowing an assistant to travel along them. (3) The Government reserved some percentage of quota in employment to the handicapped. (4) The Government opened 18 special exchanges for the physically handicapped to register their name for employment at Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Bhuvaneswar, Bombay, Calcutta, Chandigarh, Delhi, Hyderabad, Jabalpur, Kanpur, Madras, Patna, Shimla, Gauhati, Trivendrum and Agartala. (5) Ten vocational rehabilitation centers for the physically handicapped are functioning at Ahmedabad, Bombay, Calcutta, Delhi, Hyderabad, Jabalpur, Kanpur, Ludhiana, Madras and Trivendrum. (6) Special queues are provided for the handicapped people in public places and offices. (7) Special quota for admission in Educational Institutions has been provided for all courses in Educational institutions. (8) Special grants have been released for educational institutions which are opened for handicapped and Disabled. Artificial Limbs Manufacturing Corporation The Government of India has set-up an Artificial Limb Manufacturing Corporation at Kanpur to produce high quality aids and appliances for the handicapped' persons. Training Facilities for Employment These facilities are available both in the Government & voluntary sectors. About 100 training institutions exist for providing training in a variety of vocational activities to the handicapped persons.

Other Facilities 1.) Loans are available from banks at concessional rates of interest for the handicapped persons to set up self-employment ventures. 2.) 3 per cent of vacancies in group 'C' and 'D' posts in the Government and public sector undertakings have been reserved for the disabled persons. 3.) A ten year relaxation in age has been' given to enable them to take advantage ·of reservation-policy. 4.) The Government gives special concessions to handicapped persons for travel by bus, train and air, conveyance allowance to disabled Government/public sector employees, petrol subsidy for owning their own vehicles. 5.) The Ministry of Petroleum has made a certain percentage of reservation for allotment of petrol pumps/gas agencies/kerosene oil depots to handicapped persons. Likewise they are given contracts for manning public telephone booths and running their own S.T.D/I.S.D booths. 6.) Priority is also given to disabled persons in the allotment of Government houses. 7.) Scholarships for handicapped students from class 9 upwards including higher and professional education are also given. 8.) H.M.T. has produced Braille wrist watches for blind students. 9.) Some states provide free prosthetic aids or give subsidy for purchasing the same: 10.) Grants-in-Aid to voluntary agencies are given for running welfare projects for the physically challenged 11.) The state of Haryana gives pension to handicapped persons ,and unemployment allowance, to the unemployed handicapped persons 12.) Braille libraries are being run by the government/non-government voluntary associations. The welfare department gives appropriate grants for the purpose. 13.) Homes for mentally retarded and blind children have been set up in several states. 14.) Sports competitions are organized for physically handicapped persons and the winners are awarded prizes. 15.) The Government gives awards to social workers for doing commendable service in the fleld of welfare of the handicapped. These awards are given each year on World Disabled Day- third sunday of March, every year.

The year 1981 was very significant being the International Year for Disabled Persons (IYDP). It was also in this year, in India that the education of the disabled was considered to be as a human resource development. Prior to this the education of the disabled, which was catered to largely in special schools, came under the purview of Department of Social welfare. This shift was considered significant because it helped create awareness in the general education system that disabled persons are also “human resources” and can become contributing members of the society.

In the 1990’s two historical legislation were enacted namely the Rehabilitation Council of India Act, 1992 passed in Parliament was created by the Ministry of Welfare to regulate manpower development programmes in the field of education of children with special needs and The Persons with Disabilities (Equal Opportunities, Protection of Rights and Full Participation) Act, 1995.

In spite of the disadvantages of the special schools and the impact on the lives of the disabled children studying in them, the law still provides for setting up of these schools for disabled children. Special schools have steadily been increasing. Presently there are about 3000 special schools addressing persons with different disabilities. It is estimated that there are 900 schools for the hearing impaired, 400 schools for the visually impaired, 1,000 for the mentally retarded and 700 for the physically disabled children.

India is party to the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD). It is

mandated for all countries that the substantive rights & principles of the Convention should reflect on

the relevant laws of the land.

The aim of this policy brief is to create awareness among parliamentarians, and also to promote and

encourage them to respond proactively to the issues related to the disability sector in India today.

In a country where terms like disabled, physically/mentally challenged, handicapped, impaired are used

interchangeably to address or refer to a person with disability, it is difficult to protect and affirm the

rights and entitlements of persons with disabilities in government policy and laws. This can be easily

sighted in all three relevant laws, which are heavily loaded with terms such as 'welfare' and

'endeavour', and aim to implement all objectives only 'within the economic capacity of state'.

Approaches to disability:

Welfare based - people with disabilities are objects of state charity in need of medical treatment and

social protection.

Rights based - people with disabilities are citizens with rights, equally capable of claiming these rights

and making autonomous decisions based on their free and informed consent as well as being active

members of society.

The Indian disability laws and Convention for the Rights of Persons with Disability (CRPD): an Incompatible relationship The Government of India has enacted three legislations for persons with disabilities viz. 1. Persons with Disabilities (Equal Opportunities, Protection of Rights and Full Participation) Act, 1995, which provides for education, employment, creation of a barrier free environment, social security, etc. 2. National Trust for Welfare of Persons with Autism, Cerebral palsy, Mental Retardation and Multiple Disability Act, 1999 has provisions for legal guardianship and creation of an enabling environment that will allow as much independent living as is possible. 3. Rehabilitation Council of India Act, 1992 deals with the development of manpower for provision of Rehabilitation services.

India has also both signed and ratified the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) on 30th March 2007 and 1st October 2007 respectively. It came into force on 3rd May 2008, and makes it obligatory on the part of the government to synchronize laws or legal provisions with the terms of the Convention. However, by not signing the optional protocol India has managed to safeguard itself in case of not fulfilling the commitments made under CRPD. The general principles of the Convention are: recognition of inherent worth and dignity; individual autonomy and independence; nondiscrimination; full and equal participation; respect and acceptance of human diversity; equality of opportunity; accessibility; equality for men and women, and respect for evolving the capacity of children with disabilities and their right to preserve their identities. Many of these principles appear in existing laws of disability, but the welfare based approach of the government presents major obstacles to all such concepts of empowerment. Besides the existing rights mentioned in the Acts, there are certain rights under the major themes of life and liberty rights, equality of respect and opportunity, right to association and social participation, right to political participation, right to health and double discrimination in relation to children and women in disability referred to in the CRPD but not appropriately incorporated within Indian disability laws and provisions in other statutes.

Interestingly a number of these rights are included in the fundamental rights of the citizen by the Constitution of India, but without mentioning reasonable accommodation for Persons with Disabilities.

“Reasonable accommodation" means necessary and appropriate modification and adjustments not imposing a disproportionate or undue burden, where needed in a particular case, to ensure to persons with disabilities the enjoyment or exercise on an equal basis with others of all human rights and fundamental freedoms(Article 4, UNCRPD).

FLAWS WITH THE GOVERNMENT POLICIES

The principal reason for the inadequacies in existing policy can be attributed to the ambiguous approach of policy makers to disability. The existing law perceives a person with disability to have some sort of a 'deficit', in need of social compensations from the government: he/she is not a productive human resource on a par with other members of society. So even if the Act pays lip service to Equal Opportunities, Protection of Rights and Full Participation, it still in principle adheres to the welfare approach. The Census 2001 states that there are 2.19 crore persons with disabilities in India, constituting 2.13 per cent of the total population. Compared to Indian statistics, the population of persons living with disability in India's neighbors is substantially higher: 5 per cent in China, 5 per cent in Nepal and 4.9 per cent in Pakistan. In the most developed countries this number raises to 18 per cent (Australia), 14.2 per cent (United Kingdom) and9 per cent (the United States). One WHO report states that ten per cent of the entire world's population live with disability (650 million) and that there are more people living with disability in India than in any other country. The tragedy is that the Census Commission failed to make any attempt to collect statistics on disability until 2001. The assumption is simple: no census, no statistics, and no problem. And now with a 2.13 per cent estimate in the 2001 census, the contentious status of figures for disability raises a fundamental obstacle to framing and implementing effective policies throughout India. The Persons with Disabilities Act, 1995 (PWDA) addresses the issue of education for children with disability as an 'endeavor' to promote their integration within mainstream schools. The focus is not on building the capacity of people living with disabilities, but rather on helping them cope within the existing mainstream educational system.

A similarly lifeless approach continues through the chapters, whether concerned with participation of people with disabilities, prevention and early detection of the disabilities, employment, affirmative action, non discrimination, research and manpower, recognition of institutions for persons with severe disabilities, social security, etc. Here one clearly realizes that the ACT which is at the heart of all policies pertaining to persons with disabilities is itself conceptually flawed. To expect a Rights Based Policy from a Welfare Based Law is therefore misplaced. Of all people living with disability, 35.9 per cent belong to the 0 to 19 years age group, which in absolute terms amounts to 7 million young people. Across the subcontinent 90 per cent of India's 36million children with physical and mental disabilities aged between 4-16 years are out of school. Currently, the education of disabled children does not fall within the purview of the Human Resource Development (Education) Ministry, but is instead the responsibility of the omnibus Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment. The prime focus of the Union Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment is rehabilitation, not education, and education is not part of its agenda. There is also no synchronization between the ambitious dreams of Education for All- Sarva Siksha Abhiyan (SSA) - drawn up by the Ministry of Human Resource and Development, and the objective of integrated schooling outlined in the Persons with Disabilities Act, 1995. One more interesting case of social injustice through disability laws concerns people living with mental illness. The mental illness category has been officially recognized by the PWD Act. Yet, they are denied any employment quota: even free education is not accessible since mental illnesses are in most cases diagnosed after the age of 18, after which point free education is embargoed under PWDA. The definition of mental illness itself is loaded with concepts of illness and dysfunctionality more than functionality. The Mental Health Act, 1987, explicitly states that a "Mentally ill person" means “a person who is in need of treatment”

CONCLUSION

Persons with disabilities include very heterogeneous group of peoples, so it becomes difficult to given any definition, which is acceptable to all. The proportion of disabled in India as per census 2001 is 2.13 percent of total population. Classification of disabled population by different categories of disabilities shows that the proportions of people with seeing disabilities are highest among disabled followed by movement disability.

Prevention is better than cure, and old say is more important in this context also. More concentration is needed in health care facilities, especially in rural areas. Classification of total disabled population by residence shows that nearly 75 percent of total disabled lives in rural areas where as most of the governmental and non-governmental organizations working for disabled are urban based.

Medical and health care facilities, being profit oriented instead of service, are also concentrated in urban areas. Because of this differences services are not reaching to all disabled. More organizations working for disabled should be there are rural areas. Organizations working in urban areas are required to expand their horizon of work to rural areas.

Literacy rate is fairly good among disabled which points towards awareness among the disabled and their parents about importance of education. At the same time it shows positive results of the efforts made by the government and non government organizations in providing educational facilities to disabled.

Various studies conducted by various organizations pointed out that the proportion of disabled with professional and technical education is very low. Most of these educated disabled are having education up to school level, which is not sufficient to compete in today's globally competitive world.

What is required is to provide facilities for higher education and vocational training. Among different categories of disabled, educational level of people with movement disability is high compared to other categories because of the fact that they face only one barriers i.e. movement in education which can be easily solved by removing constructional barriers.

Secondly the education level among disabled in rural areas is low compared to urban areas because of the concentration of educational facilities in urban areas. More educational facilities should be created in rural areas to increase the education among rural disabled.

The major barrier to employment by the people with disabilities in our society continues to be attitudinal barriers; stereotypical thinking and assumption about what people with disabilities can and can't do. The truth is that, the range of abilities of persons within any disabilities group is enormous. We need to get rid of our stereotypical images and view each "individual" as just that "an individual".

Raveesh Thukral (14517703809)

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Deeptanshu Sharma (15617703809)