Disability manifesto released in Shimla
SHIMLA: Though political parties are yet come out with their manifestos, election commission’s brand ambassador Muskan Thakur, a visually impaired student, released a disability manifesto demanding disability census in the state.
A charitable trust Umang Foundation has prepared the manifesto “Peoples' Manifesto on Disability” for political parties.
A large number of disabled students from Himachal Pradesh University and Horticulture University, Solan, were present on the occasion.
Umang Foundation chairman Ajai Srivastava said that the idea behind the disability manifesto was to draw the attention of political parties and common people towards the plight of the disabled people. In the last two Assembly elections too, the Foundation had issued the manifesto. It was the first experiment of its kind in the country to highlight the issues related to disability before elections.
Srivastava said that during the previous two elections, all major political parties— Congress, BJP and CPM—had included some of these points in their manifestos.
In this year’s manifesto, 45 issues have been included. Majority of the issues are related to educational and socioeconomic rights. The foundation has also demanded to implement the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act passed by Centre.