Disability Certificates on Sale

‘Disability’ on sale

By Neetu Chandra in New Delhi

Enjoy benefits for the handicapped as touts can get you fake certificates YOU MAY be struggling to get admission into a college or fretting about how to land yourself a government job. But many others have an easier way out: They get ‘disabled’, not literally but officially, and enjoy benefits offered to the category. And touts make it happen. Touts in the city government hospitals can get an otherwise physically normal person an official certificate confirming his disability. This certificate can be of great help as disabled people are extended a host of benefits by the government, including reservation in admissions and recruitments. There are many who have got these certificates made with the help of touts and use it for various purposes. The touts also exploit people’s wariness of the convoluted and time- taking governmental process and do the job in almost no time for a price. The government has divided the hospitals area- wise and district-wise for issuing disability certificates. For touts issuing a disability certificate is child’s play, irrespective of the area one stays in. The touts charge anywhere between ` 3,000 and ` 5,000 and get anyone a disability certificate as required in two- three days. This reporter approached city’s Bara Hindu Rao Hospital running under the Municipal Corporation of Delhi ( MCD) for getting a disability certificate. The hospital issues disability certificates to those who stay in the area near central Delhi. This reporter was approached by a tout outside the orthopaedic department asking if she required a disability certificate. “ Are you looking for a disability certificate? It’s a lengthy process in this hospital. I will get it issued for you but you will have to pay ` 5,000,” the tout, who was not an employee of the hospital, claimed. After negotiations when the reporter agreed to pay ` 3,000, the tout asked her for two photographs. “ You will get it in three to four days, the certificate will look genuine and will have all the relevant entries,” he said. Under the law, the disability certificate is issued by a medical authority notified by the state government. Each such medical authority is constituted at the district level and is supposed to receive applications from the disabled, assess their disability and issue them the certificate within a week from the receipt of application, if the disability is assessed at 40 per cent. Only a government doctor is authorised to issue a disability certificate for which an applicant is required to come to the district government hospital and present his case before the medical authority constituted for the purpose. When the reporter asked for meeting the doctor to issue the certificate, the tout said, “ There is no need to meet the doctor. You don’t need to appear before any medical board too. There should be three stamps. I will give you a stamped certificate; your work will be done. You don’t worry. I have made a dozen certificates that students are using.” The next day, the tout called the reporter and told her that the work would be done in two days. The Bara Hindu Rao Hospital issues certificates for Locomotor disability by way only of amputation complete permanent paralysis of limbs, or blindness. The procedure for issuing disability certificates to the physically and mentally challenged people by all the notified hospitals under the Delhi government is lawful and reasonably time- taking for credibility of the certificate for genuine handicapped people. “ One should always get a disability certificate through the government hospitals only. There are strict norms to obtain these certificates. The touts often print the fake registration numbers on the certificates. We are trying our best to stop this practice. We are bringing strict measures to nab these touts,” Delhi health minister Dr A. K. Walia said. RIGHT WAY TO GET IT A handicapped person needs to submit documents to the medical superintendent’s office of the concerned hospital The applicant is given a date for appearing before the medical board within 21 days of furnishing the documents An OPD card is prepared and issued to the applicant. Using this card, the applicant is required to attend the OPD of the medical officer for examination Necessary investigations are carried out by the medical officer and entries made in the medical card, after a week Applicants need to present themselves before the board on the date fixed for such appointment The handicapped person will be examined by the designated board of doctors, along with report received On the board’s recommendations, a physically handicapped certificate is issued to the applicant. Source: Disability on Sale

IIT insists on re-evaluating the disability by its medical board despite a valid certificate

IIT has refused to accept the disability certificate issued by Medical College of Darbhanga - an authorized board under the law and contrary its own medical board to declare the person only 23% disabled! Such cases are on rise and the persons with disabilities are always exposed to situations like this where their disability is questioned when it comes to availing benefits.

Here are the details from Indian Express.

IIT says no to rank 113 for disabled

Pritha Chatterjee : New Delhi, Sun Jun 17 2012, 

Seventeen-year-old Amit Kumar was thrilled to have secured the 113th rank in the IIT-JEE this year under the general physically disabled category.

He had a disability certificate from Darbhanga Medical College and a letter from the civil surgeon of his hometown Sitamarhi in Bihar. The certificate stated that Kumar has 40 per cent disability.

The IIT-Delhi, however, refused him admission after he cleared the entrance test as its 13-member medical board from AIIMS, headed by Dr R C Deka, examined Kumar and noted that he had only 23 per cent locomotive problems.

Under the Indian Disability Act of 1995, 23 per cent disability does not qualify for the handicapped quota.

Kumar has now decided to move court.

IIT-Delhi officials claim this is the first such case in the physically handicapped category of the JEE.

Speaking to Newsline, Kumar called the IIT decision unfair. “I was allowed to sit for the entrance exam under the physically handicapped category on the basis of my disability certificates. How can they declare the certification baseless, when they allowed me to apply under that category,” he asked.

Kumar’s lawyer Ashok Aggarwal said, “His certificate is given by an authorised government hospital. He also has a supplementary letter from the district surgeon who is a gazetted officer. Under the Disability Act, a certified government medical college can give disability certificates which should be considered valid for all government educational institutions.”

IIT-JEE chairperson Dr G B Reddy said the IIT policy had been advertised and if the candidate had a problem, he should have protested earlier.

“Our policy is very clear and has been the same since the institution of the IITs. In all our advertisements, we have maintained that our own medical board, comprising AIIMS doctors, will have the final word in certifying disability. The candidate participated, and even appeared for the counselling, without protesting against this. Why is he reacting only because he was not selected?” said Dr Reddy.

A 2003 judgment by the Delhi High Court, under the bench of Justice Vikramjit Sen, had given the upper hand to medical boards of government medical colleges vis-a-vis those constituted by institutions — on authorisation of disability — in the case of Dr Raman Khanna Vs University of Delhi.

Until 2005, 10 years after the institution of the Disability Act, the Delhi High Court had ordered the government to issue proper guidelines to identify disabilities and authorise government institutions to provide disability certificates.

Kumar’s disability certificate from Darbhanga Medical College, issued on August 6, 2005, states his diagnosis to be “orthopedically handicapped due to stiffness of knee and hip. He is suffering from multiple exostoses”.

Exostoses is a condition when there are unnatural lumps in the bones of the child, which cause immense pain while walking.

A doctor who was part of the AIIMS medical board for IIT said: “The problem in our country is the absence of proper guidelines to define the extent of disability, as per the patient’s disorder. What may be seen as 50 per cent disability by one board, another can be only 20 per cent. In Amit’s case, his condition may even improve after surgery, but that has not been considered by the previous board.”

Inclusive play- Sensory Garden in Pune, India

Dear Colleagues,

With the efforts of Rotary Club of Pune East and Barclays Technology Centre & Bal Kalyan Sanstha, an inclusive sensory garden has been developed.

In western world there have been several attempts similar to these to give an inclusive play experience to children with all abilities.  India should consider at least one each such park in most districts to begin with and then percolate it down to children play areas in residential areas. Such a park is not just for disabled children. This enriches experiences of all children irrespective of disabilities.

Here is the news item from Times of India

Sensory garden to help kids with disabilities learn while playing

TNN | Jun 21, 2012, 04.20AM IST

PUNE: The city now has its own sensory garden specifically created to be accessible and enjoyable to children with disabilities.

The 600-sq-ft garden, called the Rotary Sensory Garden, housed in Bal Kalyan Sanstha, has 10 elaborately-created spaces providing sensory opportunities which people with disabilities normally do not experience.

The garden, developed by Rotary Club of Pune East and Barclays Technology Centre in Pune, boasts of tactile flooring, a sand pit, mini pond, sound instruments, including drums and bells, a tactile panel wall, 66 varieties of plants, etc.

Minita Patil, manager, Bal Kalyan Sanstha, said, "Many European countries have sensory gardens to suit all kinds of disabilities. There are sensory gardens in India too, but they are primarily restricted to specific disabilities only. At this garden special children with various disabilities can learn and enjoy themselves."

A portion of the garden has a pond in which children can play. "One side of the pond has a stationary structure resembling a boat, and has been designed according to the special needs of children with various disabilities, including cerebral palsy," said Patil, adding that the garden was built at a cost of Rs 25 lakh.

A tactile panel wall at the entrance has different materials embedded in it. Children can touch and experience the different textures, describe the various sensations, and also investigate which material is hot, cold, soft or hard and can identify the materials by their names later.

The garden has a game of snakes and ladders and a periscope (an instrument for observing from a concealed position). "A 'magic sound instrument' is another interesting component of the garden. The user's voice travels from one end of a steel pipe and can be heard at the other end in the form of sound waves. In addition, there are 66 varieties of plants with different smells, taste and textures here. Many of these plants are scented, while some are also edible," said Patil, adding that the garden is frequented by an average of 150-200 people daily.

"Sensory gardens improve fine and gross motor skills of the user, encourage communication, stimulate sensory awareness and promote hands-on and multi-sensory learning. They also reduce aggressive behavior," she added.

Suvarna Kadam, parent of a four-year-old with mild autism, said, "My daughter loved the tactile flooring and spent considerable amount of time just exploring the different textures. The drums and bells create resonance which attracts children. Children are free to play as they like and can be themselves here, which is not possible in other gardens."

Madhavi Shahane, special educator for hard of hearing, at the C R Ranganathan School for the Deaf, brought about 60 students to the garden on Wednesday. "The garden not only helps in educating the students, but is also be a great recreation for them. Though these students suffer from partial or total inability to hear, they can feel the vibration caused by the musical instruments such as the drums and the musical tree. This brings them immense joy. It is their first visit to the garden so they are trying to understand all the features here. The next visit will be even more enjoyable," said Shahane.

Sharda Devi, mother of a 12-year-old with autism, said features such as the stationary bicycles will help children learn balancing. "The play ladder will help autistic children overcome the fear of downward motion," she observed.

More than 50% PwD have no Disability Certificates

Three of 5 disabled have no proof of their condition
Aditi Tandon/TNS

New Delhi, June 17
Three in every five differently-abled persons in India have no proof of their disability. Seventeen years after the government enacted the Persons with Disabilities Act in 1995 to make life easier for such persons, evidence from across the country shows that only 39.13 pc of them have been issued disability certificates.

Only 12 states, led by Andhra Pradesh, have reported more than 50 per cent coverage of their differently-abled population. Union Territory of Daman and Diu has issued disability certificates to just 1.13 pc of the total differently-abled persons living there, as per 2001 census.

New Delhi is among the poorest performers and has so far given certificates to only 10.19 pc of its physically challenged population. The 2001 Census puts the count of differently-abled persons living in Delhi at 2.36 lakh. Out of them, only about 2,400 persons have got disability certificates until March 31, 2012.

Coverage reported by Jammu and Kashmir and Uttarakhand is also lower than the national average. These states have issued disability certificates to 38.88 pc and 22.23 pc of their respective differently-abled populations.

Overall, out of 216.3 lakh differently-abled persons in India (2001 Census), the government has managed to give official proof of disability only to 84.62 lakh persons till March this year. Around 131.67 lakh differently-abled persons are still awaiting their certificates, reveals the latest data collated by the Office of Chief Commissioner of Disabilities under the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment.

These are shockingly low numbers. Simply put, 60.87 per cent of the differently-abled persons in India can't access the rights guaranteed to them under the law — be it transport concessions, job reservations or quotas in educational institutions. This also explains why year after year, the posts reserved for the differently-abled persons in government offices and seats set aside for them in educational institutes go vacant.

"A disability certificate is the very foundation of the life of a differently-abled person. It is to me what a UID is to you. It is my virtual gateway to the world, to life itself. But the procedure to get this document is so complex in India that most differently-abled persons, mainly the poor, never manage to get it," says Javed Abidi, President, Disability Rights Group, (DRG) an umbrella organisation of NGOs working for in the disability sector.

Under the law, the disability certificate is issued by a medical authority notified by the state government. Each such medical authority is constituted at the district level and is supposed to receive applications from the disabled, assess their disability and issue them a certificate within a week from the receipt of application, if the disability is assessed at 40 per cent. Only a government doctor is authorised to issue a disability certificate for which an applicant is required to come to the district government hospital and represent his case before the medical authority constituted for the purpose.

But the problem is this: Government documents reveal that so far only 16 states in India have notified these medical authorities. These are Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal, Bihar, Delhi, Goa, Gujarat, Jharkhand, Lakshadweep, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Punjab, Rajasthan, Sikkim, Tamil Nadu and UP.

The DRG had petitioned the Health Ministry and the PMO earlier saying the delivery of disability certificate should be decentralised down to primary health centre-level so that a poor villager can get his disability assessed without having to take the trouble of coming all the way to the district.

"We ask a simple question. If a passport can be delivered to an applicant at home, what is the problem in delivering a disability certificate at home? A disabled has a greater right over the document because his movement is impaired. We have asked for a simple online application to be designed to allow the disabled to declare their disability. Let the government verify the authenticity of the claim and home deliver the certificates," Abidi says.

11th Meeting of Disability Commissioners: 2012

11th National Meeting of the State Commissioners, Disabilities to Review Implementation of the Persons with Disablities Act, 1995 held

Union Minister of Social Justice & Empowerment Shri.Mukul Wasnik has urged States to appoint fulltime Commissioners for Persons with Disabilities and provide adequate staff and create necessary infrastructure for welfare and development of the disabled persons.

Addressing the 11th National Meeting of State Commissioners for Persons with Disabilities here today, Shri Wasnik said that the status of implementation of the existing Persons with Disabilities Act across the country is skewed and uneven. This is attributable to a variety of reasons including absence of full time Commissioners disabilities with independent charge at a state level. He said that his Ministry would extend all possible support in creating barrier free environment in States and UTs.

Speaking on the occasion, the Minister said that the Ministry is working on a new legislation for the empowerment of persons with disabilities in line with the UN Convention. He said that a Committee has been already constituted comprising of stakeholders, experts, some State Governments and Union Ministries, etc. to draft a new legislation to replace the present Act. The Committee submitted its Report; including a draft Bill called The Rights of Persons with Disabilities Bill. We are examining the Bill in consultation with 17 concerned Central Ministries and Departments. The Bill has also been discussed in a meeting of the Central Coordination Committee, a statutory forum set up under the existing Persons with Disabilities Act, on 12th November last.

Minister of State for Social Justice and Empowerment Shri D. Napolean said that State Commissioners for Disabilities should play proactive role in ensuring that all children with disabilities are covered under Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan. During the meeting he suggested to establish Disability University, special recruitment wing for differently abled persons, disability rehabilitation department, fully equipped early intervention center in every district and time slot on all national media for broadcasting programmes related to disability.

Earlier making a presentation Chief Commissioner for Persons with Disabilities Shri P.K Pincha said that all States have constituted the State Coordination Committees and State Executive Committees under the Persons with Disability Act, 1995 which provides for education, employment, creation of barrier-free environment, social security etc. However, regular meetings of these committees are not held. 14 States such as Assam, Bihar, Chhatisgarh, Gujarat, Haryana, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Odisha, Madhya Pradesh, Meghalaya, Kerala, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu and West Bengal have appointed full time Commissioners. A total 35 States have constituted Medical Boards in each district to facilitate issue of disability certificates. The Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment has identified more than 2366 jobs(Group A-785,Group B-254,Group C-1112 and Group D-251) including IAS and other Central Services for the disabled. 24 States /UTs have amended building by laws or issued instruction for creating a barrier free environment.

Secretary to Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment Shri K.M Acharya was also present during the meeting. State Commissioners for Disabilities from 26 States and UTs are participating in the 2-day meeting to review the implementation of PWD Act. Representatives from Central apex organisations including Rehabilitation Council of India, National Trust, National Handicapped Finance Development Corporation and National Institutes for different disabilities are participating in the meeting organised by the Chief Commissioners of Disabilities.