NAGAON, Nov 30 - Free aids and assistive devices were distributed among the identified Divyangjans under the ADIP scheme at the block level, and among senior citizens under the Rashtriya Vayoshri Yojana, Govt of India, at a camp held here on Friday.
Union Minister for Social Justice and Empowerment Thaawarchand Gehlot graced the event as the chief guest through video-conferencing. Assistive devices of worth Rs 2.62 lakh were distributed among 50 beneficiaries. Different categories of assistive devices including tricycle, wheelchair, walking stick, smart cane, smart phone, hearing aid and tripod were distributed among the Divyangjans and senior citizens.
In his speech, Gehlot said that under the leadership and guidance of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the ministry has been able to implement a new Act for persons with disabilities. Currently, the categories for persons with disabilities have been increased from seven to 21, and reservation for such persons in government jobs has also been increased from 3 per cent to 4 per cent while the reservation for students with disabilities in higher educational institutions has been raised to 5 per cent.
He further informed that the ministry is providing unique identification cards to Divyangjans in all the states, covering 709 districts, and around 50.33 lakh UDID cards have already been issued. The districts of Assam may also work on this and issue such cards to Divyangjans, the minister stated.
Altogether 4,147 beneficiaries in Nagaon district will be provided with 7,585 assistive devices in different categories at a cost of Rs 261.15 lakh, and these devices will be distributed among the beneficiaries by organizing a series of distribution camps at the block level. Among these beneficiaries, 3,551 are persons with disabilities and 596 are senior citizens.
The camp was organized by the Artificial Limbs Manufacturing Corporation of India, Kanpur, under the aegis of the Department of Empowerment of Person with Disability, Union Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment, in association with the Department of Social Welfare, Assam, and the district administration, Nagaon.
