From the States

Chennai

Lucknow

New Delhi

Rourkela

Srinagar

Unfriendly Madras High Court

No handicapped person figures in the names of sitting judges or names pending consideration in the Madras High Court. Describing the non-consideration of handicapped persons for Judge posts as an "exclusive" policy of the higher judiciary, a senior jurist says that by continuing to ignore the handicapped, the judiciary is violating a statutory mandate.

"The High Court building itself is far from disabled-friendly." Staircases precede all entrances to the actual court complex and none has a ramp. Even to access the limited elevator facility, one has to climb several steps.

The condition of the City Civil Court, where many handicapped or injured persons come to dispose before courts hearing accident claims cases, is worse. One can see disabled, injured or old people being carried up the stairs by their companions, said an advocate.

Source: Regional disparity in High Court representation irks advocates. The Hindu, Delhi, 2 August 2006.

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Media filled in on issues concerning disability

Almost seven crore people in the world are disabled, of which two-thirds are from developed countries.

In Uttar Pradesh alone, 8.1 per cent people are disabled. These staggering figures were disclosed by the Secretary, Disabled welfare, Rohit Nandan during an interactive session organized by the UP press Club.

On the occasion, a documentary film 'Kinara' was also screened and it reflected the expectations a disabled person had from the society. Rohit Nandan said that 82 per cent of all the disabled in India lived below the poverty line. "Medical equipment for treatment and therapies are very costly," he added.

Nandan said that poverty, malnutrition and unhygienic living conditions were the main causes of disability in the world. He also said that 30 per cent children in India had a body weight less than 2.5 kg at birth and that such children were more prone to physical disorders.

He also referred to the controversy created by an IPS officer DK Panda who began dressing and behaving likes Radha (of the Krishna legend). He said that Panda was mentally ill and that he needed professional help to combat his problem. On the contrary the media played on the drama of the episode and the IPS washed their hands after making him take voluntary retirement.

Source: Media briefed on issues concerning disabled. The Pioneer, Lucknow 4 August 2006.

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Delhi College of Arts refuses admission to dyslexic teen

Dyslexic students seeking admission under the disability quota better prepare themselves for a rude shock. For, the Delhi University is not sure if dyslexia, a learning disability, falls in the ambit of disability quota for educational institutions.

Sonum Malhotra, a student of DSP Mathura Road, scored 84 per cent in Class XII and applied for Bachelors in Fine Arts at the Delhi College of Arts. She was seeking admission under the disability quota because she was detected to be dyslexic when she was in the sixth standard.

To her surprise, she was refused admission by the college, while St. Stephen's and LSR accepted her for History (Hons) and Psychology (Hons) courses respectively under the disability quota.

"We know it will be difficulty for her to cope with the academic pressure. She is interested in art so we thought fine arts would be a better course for her," says her mother Vijay Laxmi. The student's parents claim that they approached the Delhi University and the Education Ministry only to get tangled in the bureaucratic set-up.

However, S.K. Vij, dean Students Welfare, Delhi University, said, "We have not received any such complaint. But if we do we will study the particulars of the case and see if the candidate is eligible for admission.

Source: College denies dyslexic student disability quota. The Hindustan Times, New Delhi, 5 August 2006.

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Med College shatters dreams of a disabled girl

Throughout her young life, Sashmita Haro, a polio survivor has fought the odds to overcome her disability and to realize her dream of wearing a doctor's coat. Polio failed to crush her spirit and determination - while the authorities of VSS Medical College in Burla did their utmost to.

Despite her handicap, Sashmita sailed past the rigors of the medical entrance exam and emerged with flying colors. However, the college dashed her doctor dreams by refusing her admission due to the extent of her disability.

A tribal from Sambalpur, Sashmita always wanted to become a doctor and serve the poor. She stood second in the ST category of the All Orissa Joint Entrance Examination and attended a counseling session in Cuttack soon after.

When she visited VSS Medical College with her documents, the authorities sent her to the district handicap board for a medical check-up. Unfortunately for her the report said the suffered from 87% disability. The college lost no time in rejecting her. The cut-off percentage for disability is below 70%.

Not one to give up easily, Sashmita and her father are exploring legal options. Questioning the veracity of the report, Sashmita said, "About two months ago, I had appeared before the handicap board and the chief medical officer of Sambalpur to get a handicap certificate. The tests revealed 65% disability. How can the percentage change so much? This is injustice, I will certainly move court".

Denying any mischief, VSS Medical College principal J.K. Balabantaray said, "I was not aware of her earlier handicap certificate and the percentage given by the handicap board. We sent her for a check-up according to the rules. Since the report suggested that her disability percentage was above the accepted norm of 70%, we could do nothing".

Source: Disabled girl denied med seat. The Times of India, Mumbai, 3 August 2006.

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Physically handicapped in J&K victims of official callousness

Despite directions by the state high court, the Social Welfare Department has failed to conduct a disability specific census in the state and to place on record all state and central government social security schemes and their implementation for the disabled population.

This direction was passed in response to the Public Interest Litigation filed by Srinagar based Human Rights Law Network (HRLN) through Javed Ahmad Tak before the Division Bench of the high court of J& K seeking direction for providing barrier free environment at all the public places for the disabled persons. Furthermore reservation in employment and free education till the age of 18 years has also been sought.

According to the census Report of 2001 the number of physically challenged persons in the state is 3,02,670 that is 3% of the total population. This is the first and only official census data available for the disabled population.

However, the unofficial report presented by the non-government organization puts the figure close to 7 lakh which is 7% of the total population. After 2001, no formal data is available concerning the physically challenged population.

The state government is working at a snails pace for implementing various schemes for the welfare of disabled persons. Ironically, the government has not made any significant move to redress their problems.

The situation in the state is that at present the rights of the disabled (as envisioned by the J&K Persons with Disabilities Act, 1998) are being blatantly disregarded. The PIL pleads that reservations in educational institutions and government organizations can serve no purpose without accessibility to facilities that enable persons with disabilities to use them.

The Act further ensures that every child has access to free education in an appropriate environment till he attains the age of 18 years. However, nowhere in the state has any attempt been made towards the implementation of the mandatory provisions of the Act.

These people are also deprived of any monetary benefits. While the government has stated that, there is shortage of funds, around 30000 disabled persons registered with the social welfare department have not been provided any financial assistance. Most of these cases belong to the poor section of the society.

"Funds have not been sanctioned though we have been pressing higher authorities to take cognizance of this alarming number of persons with disability. More than 50,000 cases of disabled persons have been registered with us but so far only 23000 have derived benefits to some extent," says Bashir Ahmad, Deputy Director Social Welfare Department.

However, PIL states that the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) in its report of J&K of 2004-05 revealed that the integrated social security scheme has been defectively implemented. The scheme aims at providing social cover to the disabled persons having no source of livelihood by way of financial assistance of Rs.200 per month.

This, however, is only a representative situation because in the said report it has also been revealed that not only is this scheme suffering from defective implementation but, even the ICDS has not been carried forward properly. Besides, the funds allocated to the social welfare Department for the execution of various schemes provided for the rights of the disabled persons have lapsed owing to want of utilization.

Source: Physically handicapped in J&K victims of official apathy. Kashmir Times, Daily, Jammu, 2 August 2006.

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