Armed Forces must respect Section 47 of Disabilities Act as a non-discrimination provision

Its an old article from Indian Express published on 15 Nov 2012, however, is very pertinent given a large number of soldiers being discriminated on ground due to acquired disabilities whether attributable to service or otherwise.

Its cruel to see that while a civilian government employee (with a contributory pension) is retained in service and paid his salary in full as a social protection, a soldier who dedicates his life in to the service of nation and ready to sacrifice it on call of duty (eligible for lifelong pension) is left to fend for himself without any social protection in case of acquired disability. This itself means a big discouragement to join the defence forces as a combatant  in comparison to a similar post as a civilian. 

Isn't this nullification of the provisions of Section 47 of the Persons with Disabilities and the spirit of Article 14 of Constitution of India? Its absurd since the section 47 comes under the chapter on Non-Discrimination in the Act! The defence minister must look in to it and consider retaining the provisions of Section 47 to encourage more young minds joining the defence forces at all levels.

Here  goes the article: 

Fighting for a fair deal

M.P. Anil Kumar : Thu Nov 15 2012, 02:54 hrs

The armed forces must do more for differently abled personnel

Generals Ian Cardozo, Pankaj Joshi and Vijay Oberoi are luminaries of the Indian army, for they attained that rank and served in the frontline toughing it out on prosthetic legs.

Soldiers, sailors and airmen, by the very nature of their occupation, are prone to physical injuries, the severest form being spinal cord injury. The conditions — paraplegia (paralysis waist down) and quadriplegia (paralysis neck down) — sentence the victim to lifelong wheelchair mobility.

Given the nature of the profession, the armed forces need to maintain a fit profile. However, not every soldier needs to be in the trenches; the organisation has to deploy a mini-army in the offices to oil the wheels. So, instead of sidelining hors de combat soldiers, they can be retrained for sedentary tasks and made useful cogs in the machine, especially in a computer-driven workplace.

While the norm in the armed forces was to out the spinal-cord-injured personnel, in the early 1990s, realising the worth of his experience and utility to the service, the air force reversed its policy and retained Wing Commander Ashok Limaye, a paraplegic. The army followed suit, thus setting in motion the employment and rehab of wheelchair-bound officers within the services itself.

Beginning with amputees, it expanded to embracing worse-off paraplegics, and this initiative came years before Parliament gave the differently abled community its first sniff of empowerment through the Persons with Disabilities (Equal Opportunities, Protection of Rights and Full Participation) Act, 1995.

Section 47 of the disability act, its high-water mark, is an enabling measure that proactively protects the employment of differently abled government staff. In a nutshell, it states that any employee who acquires a disability during his service has to be retained in the rolls with full pay and other dues till the age of superannuation (pension thereafter), even if he cannot be accommodated in any post. He cannot be denied promotion on the ground of his disability.

One need not wade through the legalese to distil the spirit of this section, which is to enable persons with disabilities to remain employed, thus ensuring their sustenance and restoring their dignity and self-worth. From the vantage point of a paraplegic soldier, all the fizz of this act went flat with the issuance of a statutory notification (SN) via the gazette of 13 April 2002. By exercising the powers conferred by the proviso to section 47, the Union government exempted, prospectively, all categories of posts of combatants of the armed forces from the protective shield of section 47. Since fighting fettle is a requisite, this exclusion does look reasonable. But only on the surface.

While the differently abled civilian employee is looked after, the paraplegic soldier in the prime of life would be wheeled off to fend for himself and his family on peanuts packaged as a disability pension. The government consigns the paraplegic soldier to a far lower quality of life vis-à-vis the differently abled civilian employee. The SN therefore discriminates and does a grave wrong to those who risk life and limb in the line of duty. The irony is that section 47 is unfurled in the act under the rubric of “non-discrimination”. It would be a surprise if the SN was not found to fall afoul of Article 14 (right to equality before the law and equal protection of the law) of the Constitution.

If the government doesn’t rescind the SN to restore parity, then equality demands the enhancement of disability pension to match full emoluments . If not, one expects our lawmakers to restore equal rights among various differently abled employees when the new legislation to attune the disability act to the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities comes up in Parliament. But that could mean a long wait.

While the army struck the right note in the beginning, and one presumed the inclusion of paraplegics had evolved into an imperative, it was inconsistent in absorbing even pre-SN paraplegics. A major invalided out in February 2002 had appealed against his expulsion. The Armed Forces Tribunal upheld his contention and reinstated him. The army, readying to challenge that order, indicated its reluctance to welcome paraplegics back to the fold.

The IAF has a history of compassion, but its test comes in the form of a flight cadet who sustained spinal injury while ejecting from a jet trainer last August. Then four months short of becoming an officer, this paraplegic lad wants to serve the IAF in any non-flying capacity. A change of branch and commission will mean setting a precedent. The lazy option is to throw the rulebook at him and bid him goodbye. That will be a waste of his training and cruel, to boot. Will the IAF choose to be a pioneer by commissioning him? By some coincidence, the navy too will be asked to take a call as for the first time, a wheelchair-bound officer has sought retention.

Perhaps Defence Minister A.K. Antony, who lays great store on fairness, can step in to tell the services to consider the spirit of the disability act to be their lodestar when called upon to decide the fate of a paraplegic soldier.

The writer was a fighter pilot in the IAF

Source: Indian Express

An article by Avinash Shahi on the successful stint of CCPD Mr. PK Pincha

A CCPD to be emulated

- by  Avinash Shahi

Shri Prasanna Kumar Pincha, whose two year stint as the Chief Commissioner of Persons with Disabilities (CCPD) ended on December 27 2014, has left an indelible ink on the disability movement in the country. The CCPD is appointed by the Government of India as per the Section 57 of the Persons with Disability Act, 1995. Being totally blind by birth, his visionary intent and foresightedness is palpable in his groundbreaking judgments

In February 2013, His Office issued the comprehensive uniform guidelines for conducting examinations for persons with disabilities. This Office Memorandum is hailed as pathbreaking judgment by any CCPD since the establishment of the office in 2001. Stories abound that Students with disabilities are often discriminated in the entrance examinations by the exam conducting authorities. 26 February 2013 judgment is a big step forward towards putting an end to such humiliation. As a result of that ruling, the Kerala High Court directed the University Grants Commission to provide NET exam question papers in Braill to all print-disabled examinees. Following that order, UGC has been providing question papers in Braille since June 2014.

His Office also took suo-motu notice against the ministry (MSJE) under which it operates. Mr Pincha summoned MSJE official for not reviewing the list of identified posts as stipulated under the section 32 of the PWD Act. Section 32 of the PWD calls upon the State to review/update the list of identified posts after every 3 years. In the order delivered on 23 November 2012, He directed the Ministry of Social Justice and empowerment to notify the updated list of identified posts and comply within one month. Consequently, the government of India published the newly updated list in early 2013.

In the whole of February this year, disability rights activists staged a successful countrywide movement. It aimed to prevent the passage of anti-disabled RPD Bill which government of that time seemed adamant to legislate in haste without discussion. Delhi Police even batoned peaceful protesters which attracted strong condemnation from the CCPD. Unexpectedly, when the last parliament session of the UPA II government got over, it again stepped-up its efforts to bring RPD Bill through an ordinance. When the ordinance route seemed imminent, Mr Pincha, went out of the box and wrote a letter to the prime minister expressing his reservation against the unconstitutional ordinance. His avowed commitment towards ensuring non-discrimination and protection of the rights of persons with disabilities was evident from the letter which he wrote to the former prime minister Manmohan Singh.

Mr Pincha’s pioneering legacy of disability advocacy is a solid Launchpad which needs to be strengthened by the prospective CCPD. During his tenure he has galvanized the recently established department of Disability Affairs’ which is responsible for dispersing funds and overseeing its actual implementation. His unblemished track record and unflinching commitment towards espousing the rights of persons with disabilities should serve as the eye-opener for the government. And next CCPD should also be appointed who is a person with disability of high repute.

Source: icareinfo(dot)in 

Design & Disability - How India is catching up

Design and disability

August 22, 2014  

SANGEETA BAROOAH PISHAROTY

Accessible cabs for the disabled, talking ATMs, Braille and audio signage, camera mouse... a lot seems to be happening in the field of Universal Design in India lately.

It was a family trip to America in the late ’90s that changed the outlook — and therefore the business — of G. Gopala Krishna. Bangalore-based GGK, a materials engineer, had been making signage for use in institutes, hotels, hospitals, airports and public places till then. “Ladies restroom here, lift this way….the kind you usually come across in such places.”

After he returned home, he thought about what he had seen in public places across America. “Alongside the usual signage, there are audio and Braille signages. That set me thinking, why don’t we have any? How do our differently abled people navigate without them? What does our law say,” relates GGK. Realising that we do have a law that talks about barrier-free environment and access to people with disabilities, also the reality that there is hardly any maker of such signage in India, GGK thought of crafting some. After a lot of research, also some more travel to the U.S., he came up with a material and a technique to craft Braille signage. And today, GGK’s company, Braille Signs India-USA, not only produces Braille signage for the Indian market but for countries across the world.

“I realised, a lot of science is involved in making such signage, unlike the usual ones I have been making. The material used in the U.S. has been patented by a company there, so I couldn’t have used it. I thought a lot and zeroed in on a kind of hard plastic. It is long lasting because it is much more rugged and has more resistance to vibration, also vandalism. The best part is, it is less expensive than what is available in America. So I have got an advantage,” says a smiling GGK, a winner of this year’s NCPEDP-Mphasis Universal Design Award, given away in New Delhi every August 14.

If the winners of this pioneering annual award given to individuals and companies since 2010 by Delhi-based NCPEDP alone are taken cognisance of, there are now quite a few instances of home-grown accessible design. Accessible cabs for the disabled, talking ATMs, barrier-free educational institutes, and assistive technology such as hand-gesture controlled remote, audio modules for mobile phones, etc. are all initiatives people and companies have been recognised for. Seems like a lot is happening in the field of Universal Design in the country lately. Particularly heartening when one recalls a conversation with NCPEDP founder and disability rights activist Javed Abidi in 2010 about how difficult was the job for his organisation to fill names of nominees for the three categories of the award.

Going back to Abidi to understand the shift provides a reality check of the situation. “The scenario hasn’t changed much. As heartbreaking as it is, there is not much happening in the area of accessibility or barrier-free design in India. That is not to say that nothing is happening, but not enough. The Universal Design Awards that we give every year, in that sense, is a good wake up call. I sincerely hope that things change and soon,” he says.

More often than not, the trend in India has been that individuals with disability or those with people in their family and friends circle with such needs think up innovative, barrier-free ideas.

“That is partly true, but not always. We have individuals like Shilpi Kapoor, G. Gopalakrishna, Rama Chari, Sakshi Broota and many others who do not have anything to do with disability, except their commitment and passion for the cause. Organisations and corporates too deserve their share of credit. Whatever Wipro or Mphasis or Capgemini or Cisco are doing, is noteworthy and laudable. When Vidhya Ramasubban launched Kickstart Cabs to ensure accessible transport in Bangalore, or when CHILDLINE India Foundation decides that all their awareness material should be in accessible formats so that the blind and the deaf can benefit, that needs to be celebrated,” points out Abidi.

Shilpi Kapoor, through her company BarrierBreak, has been organising Techshare India since 2008 on the lines of what the Royal National Institute for the Blind does in the U.K. For the first time, Techshare India has brought under one roof government officials, corporates, NGOs, people with disabilities and education providers with product companies.

Prashant Madhukar Naik of Maharashtra, a successful campaigner for talking ATMs in India, too feels “things are certainly changing” but hopes the Indian design industry becomes more aware and starts working closely with NGOs to understand the needs better. “Architects particularly need to do so to make the living space accessible for all,” he says. Talking about innovative ideas, he mentions “coming across a person who has designed a camera mouse for the computer.” IIT and IIM students have concentrated on products based on Universal Design, such as the recent Smart Cane, he notes, but the problem is how to market these products. The expansion of Techshare into this sector will hopefully help formalise the market.

About his own work, this Union Bank of India employee, also one of this year’s Universal Design Awards winners, adds with a tinge of pride, “A lot of hard work went into designing and making talking ATMs possible in India. Today, we have about 7000 such ATMs across the country.” Naik, suffering from low vision and albinism, also runs a first-of-its-kind website, a locator for talking ATMs in India.

To Naik also goes the credit of designing assistive devices for Maharashtra Government employees with low vision. “I was a part of a committee set up by the Mumbai High Court to provide assistive devices to blind employees and those with low vision working with the Government of Maharashtra. Today, such employees can ask for devices like magnifiers, etc. within the budget limit of Rs.50,000.”

Yet another name in the field of accessible design in India, Arun C.Rao, says he hopes to see a more proactive design industry to seriously bring about the concept of Universal Design in India. Rao is credited with designing a series of Indian sign language dictionaries and the country’s first website that teaches sign language.

GGK feels India’s huge construction industry today needs to be more open to the idea of Universal Design, a concept that has caught on pretty steadily in the West. “They are just not serious about making their projects barrier-free, nor is our government. This is despite having a law. The majority of them don’t follow these guidelines. Therefore, though so many high tech buildings and apartments are being made in India, the demand for my signage is little. I export more,” he says. However, between 2013 and 14, he has sold 5000 accessible signs in India alone. All enthusiastic about exploring further in his field, GGK has begun designing audio signage too. “Also those which glow in the dark, for low vision users. Then, I have embossed Braille instructions on door knobs, etc.” Interestingly, he has also designed a multi-metre to install in old lifts for audio signage.

“According to law, you can’t have lifts without audio signage in India anymore. So the new lifts come with audio instructions, but cities like Mumbai and Delhi have many old lifts in offices and apartment buildings. My multi-metre is for such lifts without needing to change them,” he says. He has recently installed his multi-metre in a Bangalore bank complex and has put up one in an old apartment building in his city on a trial basis. He, however, ends the conversation with yet another frustrating point, “I have approached quite a few old apartments but most are not open to the idea. They can’t seem to see the point. I don’t know why we are like that.”

Good question, why are we like that, why are we so majoritarian in our approach?

Talking ATMs

India today has nearly 7000 talking ATMs placed across the country. “From States like Tripura to Meghalaya to Pondicherry to U.P. to Goa to our big metros, you will find talking ATMs everywhere today,” says Prashant Madhukar Naik, a campaigner for this facility since 2009. Naik explains how the machine works without compromising on safety and security of the customer. “You have to wear a headphone which provides audible instructions to a user. It ensures that all the information you say, like your PIN number, etc. remains confidential.”

Naik was a part of the first ever talking ATM project taken up by an Indian bank — his employer, the Union Bank of India, in 2012. It began with Vastrapur in Ahmedabad, Gujarat. Users could easily download instruction manuals in Braille and DAISY formats from the bank website. This set a benchmark for the Indian banking sector, and the State Bank of India, just four months later, too launched its first talking ATM in New Delhi.

Source: The Hindu

Blind can write exam to become Judge, rules Spain's General Council of Judiciary

Please refer to my earlier blog entry dated 01st June 2009  titled Can a Blind / Visually Impaired Person work as a Judge / Magistrate ? This was subsequently also posted on 06 June 2009, more than 5 years ago at Changemakers.com titled How can a blind / visually impaired person work as a Judge?

Delighted to learn that after a protracted battle, the Spanish Court has ruled in the favour of a visually impaired law graduate Mr. Pérez Castellanos’ restoring his equal right to become a Judge like his fellow law graduates.

An online petition on Change.org collected more than 100,000 signatures in support of Pérez Castellanos’ legal struggle.

Photo Courtesy Change.org

Here is the news published in The Local:

Blind man wins battle to become judge

Published: 14 May 2014 11:49 GMT+02:00

Spanish legal authorities have ruled in favour of a blind 23-year-old law graduate who called for people with his disability to be allowed to become judges.

“Can a blind person like me carry out the work duties of a magistrate?” was the question sent by Gabriel Pérez Castellanos to the official body days after completing his Law degree in July 2013.

Ten months on and several adjournments later, Pérez Castellanos finally got the response he was hoping for.

Spain’s General Council of the Judiciary ruled unanimously on Tuesday that blind people can access state entrance exams to qualify as judges even though their job responsibilities may have to be adapted to suitable cases.

According to the report, evidence used in court that "can only be assessed with one’s eyesight" is limited and "not enough to completely rule out blind people from a career in the judiciary".

"I'm very happy, of course," the young man told The Local.

Having scored 7.9 in his Law degree (equivalent to a First Class Honours degree in the UK), Pérez Castellanos is now completing a Master’s degree at Garrigues, Spain's biggest law firm.

"The plan is to focus on labour law," he said of his future plans.

And while the budding lawyer admitted it would be more difficult for a blind  person to be a judge — as would be the case for many professions — he thought none of the challenges were insurmountable. 

"The main task of judges is to make decisions based on their knowledge of the law," he said.

Pérez Castellanos told the Local doesn't view himself as a spokespeson for blind people but admits he had been amazed, and delighted, by the repsonse to his situation. 

Online petition website Change.org collected more than 100,000 signatures in support of Pérez Castellanos' legal struggle.

Brazil, France, Peru and the UK already employ blind judges as stipulated in the UN's Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. 

Source: The Local

100 % FDI in Disability Sector advocated

Dear Colleagues,

In the recent budget 2014-15 announced by the Indian Finance Minister Mr. Arun Jaitely, following items relates to disability subject:

• National institute of Universal Design will be set up.

• A national level institute on Mental Health Rehabilitation will be set up.

• Centre for Disability Sport will be set up.

• 15 New Braille Presses will be established.

• 10 existing Braille Press will be improved.

• The ADIP scheme of MSJE to include contemporary equipment & assistive devices

• Currency notes that facilitate access for people with visual impairment will be launched.

A California-based Pranav Desai, Indian-American activist in the disability sector has advocated (as per the below report by PTI) 100% FDI in the Disability Sector to manufacture products for entire world's population with disabilities. The Jaipur Foot has already been a great success in war torn Afghanistan and several African countries. This seems to be a good idea while there is so much of talk about FDI in retail and even in defence sectors. This will not only enhance training & job opportunities for the youth including those with disabilities but also in general will create a favourable environment in favour of an inclusive community where there is no dearth of funds on the rehabilitation, education, training and vocational opportunities for those living with disabilities.

Here is the report:

Budget 2014: India should allow 100 per cent FDI in disability sector

PTI Jul 10, 2014, 12.12PM IST

WASHINGTON: India should tap the mega economic opportunity in the disability sector by allowing 100 per cent foreign direct investment in it to manufacture products for the specially-abled population, an influential Indian-American activist has said.

"While newly-elected Indian government has promised to help specially-abled people of India, it should also look at potential untapped mega economic opportunity as well by allowing 100 per cent FDI in this sector to manufacture products for entire world's Specially abled population," California-based Pranav Desai, Indian-American activist in the disability sector told PTI.

With growing focus on human rights and United Nations push through the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, the world body estimates that there are about one billion people.

As such disabilities across the globe has become a huge market opportunity for disabled friendly, assistive technology products and services, Desai argued, adding that new Indian government needs to tap this huge market by coming out with policies that would attract global manufacturers to set up their factories in India.

"India can also produce speech therapist (all types of trainers for special education) to cater to its domestic needs as well global needs by offering degree and diploma courses by establishing colleges for Special Needs education," he said.

Desai, who was afflicted with polio at the age of four, reached to the position of vice president of a top global IT company.

He is actively engaged in promoting education and mobility by working with NGOs (Blind People Association, The Society for Physically Handicapped and VDIS for Mentally retarded).

Desai, who would be in India this month meeting leaders of the new Indian Government, on the disability issue, asserted that it time for India to catch up with the rest of the world in the disability sector.

Source: Economic Times