SHILLONG, OCT 7: Union Minister of State for Social Justice and Empowerment Ramdas Athawale today asked the state government to implement the 4 per cent job reservation for persons with disabilities in the state as per the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016.
“I will write to the chief minister Mukul Sangma to ensure that the 4 per cent job reservation for persons with disabilities is fulfilled by the state,” Athawale told reporters after a review meeting held with senior officials of the state government held here.
He informed that only 75 out of the total population of 44,317 persons with disabilities are in government services.
Expressing concern over this data, the minister said that he had given the guidelines of the Act to the state government for taking necessary steps to ensure that 4 per cent job reservation is implemented in the state.
Athwale however said that the statistic on the backlog was not provided by the state, which he had directed the government officials to submit a report on the matter to the ministry.
Asked, the union minister of state said that he would also write to the chief minister for the state government to start a government school for children with disabilities.
“I was told that there are only 12 schools in the state run by private NGOs for catering to the educational needs of such children,” he said.
He mentioned the scheme of the government, Sugamya Bharat Abhiyan or the accessible India Campaign which is set to serve the differently-able community of the country. He informed the media that during the last three years around 550 camps were held across the country where 7 lakh 50 thousands differently-able people got benefits from the schemes of his ministry.
The schemes of the government of India, the minister said, have always been directed towards the welfare of all the people of the country including the ST and SC population. Mentioning the instances where various communities of the country are demanding SC status from the government, the minister said that the government has always been sympathetic to all these demands.
He also added that the parliament should work on the possibilities of enacting an Act where the communities or individuals, who are not from any backward caste or community but are economically backward, get the benefits of reservation in respect of education and employment. He, however, also added that in this process the government take care that the reservations quota of SCs, STs and OBCs are not affected.
The minister said that his ministry is working for providing opportunities and facilities for the disabled peoples so as to create an atmosphere which will guarantee them equal opportunities.
This can ensure the protection of their rights and enabling their full participation in the society, he added.
Some of the schemes are like assistance to disabled persons by providing them with aids and appliances, and pensions for the disables. He mentioned that state of Meghalaya has given pensions to 11695 numbers of disabled persons at Rs 500 per month. The minister, however, expressed his satisfaction that there is no case of atrocity against the SCs, unlike other states.
The minister opined that every government should sincerely put in effort for the enrichment of life of the disabled people and that every state should come forward with innovative schemes for the disabled people. The minister applauded the recent Act of the Government of Assam which makes it mandatory for government employees to look after their aging parents and needy siblings, failing which they will lose 10 per cent of their monthly salary.
The amount deducted from their salary will be given to their parents and siblings so they can support themselves, he added.
By Our Reporter
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