BHUBANESWAR: With the Centre contemplating to broaden the criteria for persons with disabilities (PWDs), the Government is likely to start a fresh enumeration of the PWDs in the State within a few months. While the Centre is currently reviewing the proposal to include 22 additional disabilities apart from the existing eight conditions, the State Government will begin the enumeration process from the Capital City.
As a part of the initiative, the Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (BMC) in association with Department of Social Security and Empowerment of Persons with Disability (SSEPD) and State Institute for Disability Rehabilitation on Friday launched - 'Bhima Bhoi Samarthya Sibir', a camp to enrol, enable and empower PWDs in the City.
At the camp PWDs registered themselves for the Unique Identity for Person with Disability (UDID) cards under the 'Swabalamban' Scheme at the camp. At present, the UDID for PWDs covers - blindness,
cerebral palsy, low vision, locomotor disability, leprosy-cured, mentally retarded, mentally ill and hearing impaired. The Department targets to enrol at least 3000 PWDs for UDIDs at the camp which ends on Saturday.
Sources said, the number of PWDs in Bhubaneswar would increase significantly from 30,000 to around 50,000 if the proposal to include more disabilities is approved by the Centre. However, NGOs working for PWDs rehabilitation said, the is a huge gap between the official figures and actual number PWDs in the City. Subsequently, the PWDs figure in the City would reach upto 1 lakh, if the new criteria are included.
With the UDID cards in effect, PWDs will not need maintain and carry multiple documents to identify or claim their medical condition Government offices or hospitals. The card will capture all the necessary details which can be decoded by a card-reader, Director SSEPD Manasi Nimbhal said. The UDID Card will also streamline the tracking system of physical and financial progress of beneficiaries at village, block, district and State levels.
The Bhima Bhoi Samarthya Sibir has several components like enrolment of beneficiaries, single window system for selection of PWDs and provision of doctors for on-spot assessment of PWDs. Speaking
at the camp, Bhubaneswar Development Authority (BDA) vice-chairman Dr KRishan Kumar said, by-laws will be amended very soon to make the accessibility clause a must for all public buildings.
Autism, major subject under the PWDs was included for the first time in the camp by the Government. An awareness session on the recently constituted Autism Appellate Medical Board was also held on
the occasion. The board comprising of paediatricians, clinical psychologists and psychiatrists is empowered to assess and certify Persons with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD).
Among others, Tourism and Culture Minister Ashok Chandra Panda, Mayor Ananta Narayan Jena, MLA (North) Priyadarshi Mishra and SSEPD Principal Secretary Niten Chandra were present.