They're out on a limb in a heartless system
BANGALORE, October 16, 2012
Deepa Kurup
Seven-year-old Sadiya lies awake as her parents and siblings, who have just
returned from an overnight trip to a dargah, catch up on their sleep. Lying on
her back, no taller than an average toddler, she wails when she spots strangers
at her door. Sadiya shares the tin-roofed 10 ft by 10 ft space in
Devarjeevanahalli with two siblings as her mother, Ahila, expects her fourth.
Ms. Ahila and her carpenter husband can ill afford the thousands they spend on
medicines every month. Just last month, they spent close to Rs. 12,000 for
scans and tests at the Bowring Hospital when little Sadiya came down with
severe fits.
Fruitless chase
It has been four years since they applied for disability pension or welfare.
The process has been so futile they stopped following up. But holding her child
close to her chest, Ms. Ahila says that her deepest regret is that her
second-born can't go to school. With no financial assistance, the anguished
mother can't even begin to imagine arranging for a special school.
Sadly, Sadiya has little to look forward to. For, in her neighbourhood, the
thickly populated and predominantly lower socio-economic area of Periyarnagar,
scores of persons with disabilities live in abject poverty, with no social
cover or State support. Worse, a large number of them, in a cruel welfare cut
enforced by the State government, have been denied their social security
pensions.
Paltry pension goes
In a bid to detect bogus beneficiaries of the disability pensions scheme -
where a paltry Rs. 400 is paid to those certified with less than 75 per cent
disability, and Rs. 1,000 for the others - names of over 1.6 lakh of the 6 lakh
beneficiaries were deleted from the list in the drive that commenced in
February 2011.
Devapriyam's is one such case. Wheelchair-bound since he lost both limbs to
polio, the 26-year-old is dependent on his aging parents, and sometimes sells
plastic toys near his house for a living. The Rs. 1,000 he got every month was
his sole steady income, which just about covered his medical expenses. Despite
repeated applications, the Directorate of Social Security and Pensions has
failed to respond to his pleas to reinstate the pension.
Bureaucratic maze
Just down the lane, there is a similar case. The pension of Kusuma (35) was
stopped four months ago. She lives with her brother Velu, a tile worker, who
says he will take care of her. He adds that the Rs. 400 was a "welcome help" in
these tough economic times. With both limbs crippled and mostly immobile, Ms.
Kusuma's disability has been classified as under 75 per cent. Many others The
Hindu spoke with complained of erratic disbursal of pensions, applications that
have been pending for years and unscientific or unfair medical certifications.
Officials at the Directorate of Disabled confirmed that there was a "mix-up" in
pensions for the disabled in the State. Every day, the directorate receives at
least 20 genuine complaints where the beneficiaries have been denied their due.
In Bangalore Urban district, as of September, 10,579 persons with disabilities
receive Rs. 400 a month, while 9,130 get Rs. 1,000. Most of the deletions from
the list were in the second category. Further, the Union government announced a
hike of Rs. 100 in pensions in the 2012 Budget, but till date no hike has been
enforced in the State, officials confirmed.
Disability rights activists have for long argued that welfare pensions for
persons with disabilities must be a universal scheme, rather than a targeted
one only for those identified as living Below the Poverty Line (BPL).
What about jobs?
The government's track record on all the other schemes or legal provisions made
under the People With Disabilities Act (1995) is poor. For instance, the
committee set up to identify government jobs for persons with disabilities had
not met for nine years, points out State Commissioner for Disabilities K.V.
Rajanna. After it was issued a notice, the Department of Women and Child has
restarted the exercise to identify jobs.
No records
Meanwhile, no records exist on the number of persons with disabilities working
in government service. Under the Act, three per cent of public sector jobs must
be reserved for disabled persons in the A and B categories (senior officials),
and 5 per cent in C and D categories. There is no political or bureaucratic
will in the government to comply with this simple requirement, says G.N.
Nagaraj, president of the Karnataka State Disabled and Care Givers Federation.
"The public sector alone can give a boost to the disability sector, and will
encourage young disabled persons to get an education," he says. A new Bill that
seeks to replace the 1995 Act envisages 5 per cent reservation in the public
sector and incentivises private employers to hire persons with disabilities.
With thanks and regards
(Rajesh Asudani)
Assistant General Manager
Reserve Bank of India
Nagpur
Cell: 9420397185
o: +91 712 2806846
R: 2591349
(In youth you want things, and then in middle-age you want to want them.)
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