Dedicated dept on cards for persons with disabilities

NEWDELHI: The Delhi government has been exploring the possibility of creating a separate department to address problems faced by persons with disabilities (Pwds). A committee has been constituted by the social welfare department to look into all aspects of department formation, a senior Delhi government official said. The committee will submit its report within the next two months.

“We are working on creating a dedicated department to look into issues of persons with disabilities. A separate department will help in providing better services,” Rajendra Gautam, social welfare minister, said.

If it gets the nod, Delhi will be the first Union Territory in the country to have such a depart- ment. So far, only six states in India — Andhra Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, and Uttar Pradesh — have a department for empowerment of disabled persons.

Currently, all policies and schemes for the welfare of Pwds in the national capital are implemented by the state government’s social welfare department, which also looks into problems faced by senior citizens, people belonging to the SC, ST and OBC communities, etc. But, with the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016, in which 14 types of disabilities have been added to the previous list, Delhi government officials say the scope of work has increased manyfold.

The first meeting of the committee, to be headed by social welfare secretary, will be held next week to discuss the department’s organisational structure and financial implications. Rashmi Krishnan, secretary, social welfare, Delhi government, and head of the committee, said, “This is being considered after the new disabilities act was notified in 2016 under which more disabilities have been included in old list. The scale of operation is going to increase with the implementation of the new Act.”

The Delhi government is gathering information about the organisational structure of such departments in other states in order to formulate a model for Delhi. “Some states already have a separate department for the empowerment of persons with disabilities. We are in the process of gathering information about the structure of these departments. We will have to work out the staff-strength required, which will be based on the estimated/projected population of specially-abled persons in the city,” Krishnan said.

A senior official aware of the developments said, “Delhi, being the national capital, has to cater to people from other states, apart from its own residents. Many of the northern states seek medical treatment and other facilities in the city. A dedicated department will help provide quality services.”

KVS Rao, director of the central government’s department of empowerment of persons with disabilities, said, “We have been writing to the state governments to form a separate department for the past few years. Though it is not mandatory to have a dedicated department, it certainly helps in provide better facilities.”