INDIA, DISABILITY INCLUSION AND THE POWER OF ‘BY’

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THE CONTEXT: Disability as an identity and entity exists at the intersection of multiple vulnerabilities social, economic and gender with each facet requiring careful consideration when conceptualising action for equity. Globally, 1.3 billion people live with some form of disability, of them, 80% live in developing countries and further, 70% of them live in rural areas. People with disabilities face unjustifiable discrimination, and consequently exclusion and they are often not at the receiving ends.

CONSTITUTIONAL FRAMEWORK FOR THE DISABLED:

• Article 41 of the Directive Principles of State Policy (DPSP): Itstates that the State shall make effective provisions for securing the right to work, to education and to public assistance in cases of unemployment, old age, sickness and disablement, within the limits of its economic capacity and development.
• Seventh Schedule of the constitution: The subject of ‘relief of the disabled and unemployable’is specified in the state list of the Seventh Schedule of the constitution.

ISSUES :

• Discriminatory approach: Current systems are designed for persons without disabilities and end up being exclusionary to people with disabilities. This leads disabled persons experiencing higher instances of poverty, lack of access to education and opportunities, informality and other forms of social and economic discrimination.
• Inadequate representation: Disabled people are not represented enough at all three levels of governance. This often leads to their isolation and decrease in financial resources.
• Limited economic opportunities: The current employment scenario is limited, providing fewer jobs for persons with disabilities. It perpetuates stereotypes that create further barriers for people with disabilities to access the labour market.
• Not aligned with UN treaty: Discrimination is also in direct contravention of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. It advocates changing attitudes and perceptions towards persons with disabilities and viewing inclusion from a social development dimension.
• Greater challenges in rural areas: Majority of persons with disabilities live in rural areas. Rural areas also have high agricultural dependence and face the heightened risk of climate calamities which put rural people at the frontlines of these challenges.
• Exclusion from government schemes: Some developmental schemes, too, exclude them. They are viewed as objects of charity and not as persons with agency with an ability to participate in decision-making processes.

STEPS TAKEN IN THIS REGARD:

• Accessible India Campaign (AIC): It is the nationwide flagship campaign of the Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities (DEPwD), Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment. The aim of the Campaign is to make a barrier-free and conducive environment for Divyangjans (Persons with Disabilities – PwDs) all over the country.
• Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016: It is the disability legislation passed to fulfil its obligation to the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, which India ratified in 2007. It provides a Unique id for persons with disabilities (UDID) card. Under the act, disability has been defined based on an evolving and dynamic concept. The types of disabilities have been increased from the existing 7 to 21 and the Central Government has been given the power to add more types of disabilities.
• Ratification of UN treaty: India signed theUnited Nations Convention on Rights of Persons with Disability and subsequently ratified it on October 1, 2007.

About United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD)

• The Convention was adopted by the General Assembly in December 2006 and it came into force on in May 2008.
• Parties to the convention are required to promote, protect, and ensure the full enjoyment of human rights by persons with disabilities and ensure that persons with disabilities enjoy full equality under the law.
• It is intended to protect the rights and dignity of persons with disabilities.
• The convention is monitored by the Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.

The SPARK project

• The ILO and the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), in collaboration with the Women’s Development Corporation in Maharashtra, are implementing the Sparking Disability Inclusive Rural Transformation (SPARK) project.
• Through this project, persons with disabilities were put in the lead, being identified from the villages, and trained as Disability Inclusion Facilitators (DIFs).
• The DIFs engage with the community, persons with disabilities, caregivers of persons with disabilities, women from self-help groups and other stakeholders to raise awareness about disability inclusion and barriers to inclusion.
• The DIFs identify women with disabilities and mainstream them in existing self-help groups for social and economic development, where these women have been able to access funds to start an enterprise.
• The SPARK project has been able to bring an attitudinal shift towards persons with disabilities, right from the societal to administrative levels.

THE WAY FORWARD:

• Increasing representation: Representation plays an important role in furthering the interests of the marginalised community. Our Constitution makers have also recognised this when they provided for reservation for Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribes in the legislature. Therefore, there is a need to increase the representation of disabled in the law making process as well.
• Inclusive policies: Disability inclusion is rooted in assuring the rights of persons with disabilities and recognising the economic benefits of inclusion. There needs to be more inclusive opportunities and employment in both urban and rural areas for the disabled persons. The inclusion of persons with disabilities into the economy can help boost global GDP between 3% to 7%, as per the study by the International Labour Organization (ILO), “The price of exclusion: The economic consequences of excluding people with disabilities from the world of work”.
• Public Awareness: Governments, voluntary organisations, and professional associationsshould consider running social campaigns that change attitudes on stigmatised issues related to person with disabilities.
• Bottom up approach: A bottom-up approach to disability inclusion is crucial to build productive pathways out of poverty and ensure that persons with disabilities are recognised as active members of society and the economy.
• Benefits outreach to disabled: There is a need to ensure last-mile connectivity of the benefits enumerated for people with disabilities by the government. It can be done by capacity-building of community leaders who can advocate for this at the grass-roots level. This is especially important in rural areas, where persons with disabilities tend to face greater challenges when compared to their urban counterparts, with even more limited access to education and employment.
• Role of private sector: The private sector holds a key in promoting the employment of persons with disabilities. Private sector can play important role in building the confidence of companies to hire and retain workers with disabilities. Engagement of employers’ federations and trade unions can have great potential to promote the employment of persons with disabilities.

THE CONCLUSION:

The goal of social justice cannot be achieved without the inclusion of persons with disabilities in all spheres of development.  There needs to be more inclusive opportunities to ensure socio economic justice to disabled persons. This can be done by creating awareness and sensitization at the community level and capacity building of government frontline workers and professionals to make lives of disabled persons easier.

PREVIOUS YEAR QUESTIONS

Q.1 Discuss the desirability of greater representation to women in the higher judiciary to ensure diversity, equity and inclusiveness. (2021)

Q.2 “Micro-Finance as an anti-poverty vaccine is aimed at asset creation and income security of the rural poor in India”. Evaluate the role of Self-Help Groups in achieving the twin objectives along with empowering women in rural India. (2020)

MAINS PRACTICE QUESTIONS

Q.1 Despite several steps taken for the betterment of persons with disabilities they still face considerable barriers in access to basic resources. Suggest measures to facilitate inclusivity and empowerment of persons with disabilities in India.

SOURCE: https://www.thehindu.com/opinion/op-ed/india-disability-inclusion-and-the-power-of-by/article67601986.ece