The Rights of People with Disability Right

A disability is a condition where people have a lack of adequacy or incapacity to perform an activity that is easier for every other individual being. For Eg: For a person who has an auditory dysfunction or visual impairment don’t have the competency to carry out normal activities of daily life.According to a 2020 UN report, 75% of children with disabilities in India do not attend schools or any other educational institute in their lifetime. Even though India has multiple laws and policies on special needs education. The goal of these laws has not yet been achieved. The children should be provided with the required services, awareness about their rights and policies, to set appropriate goals, help, and encourage them to accomplish.

Impact of Special Need People in the Society:

• Individuals with disabilities and handicaps require a level of support or dependence from their environment.
• Due to social exclusion and discrimination from the people around them, they are deprived of such support.
• There are also people who could provide support to make their lives contented with proper education from the societal level and tangible help from their friends and family.

RPWD Act – Disability

Rights of Person with Disability Act – 2016. The act focuses on the person with disabilities to provide them with equal opportunities, protection rights and full participation. The RPWD Act is obliged to the United National Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disability. The Act was proposed on 28^th December, 2016 and came into force 19^th July, 2017.

The number of disabilities included by the Act has increased from 7 to 21 and the Central Government has the authority to add more types of disabilities. The RPWD Act is applicable for the 21 disabilities.

RIGHTS AND ENTITLEMENTS

• Government will take the responsibility to take effective measures to ensure that the person with a disability enjoys equal rights with others.
• Additional benefits are reservation in higher education (not less than 5%), government jobs (not less than 4%), reservation in the allocation of land, poverty alleviation schemes (5% allotment), and more are provided for the people with benchmark disabilities and people with special needs.
• Government-funded educational institutions and government-recognized institutions will provide inclusive education to children with disabilities.
• Children in the age group of 6 to 18 years will have the full rights to education.
• For improving the Prime Minister’s Accessible India Campaign, emphasis has been given to ensure accessibility in public buildings (both Government and private) within a prescribed time frame.

Disability Etiquette

Disability Etiquette refers to treating people with disability, with respect and esteem. As a counselor, acknowledge and respect the individual’s ability to make the decisions and judgment and do not make assumptions about the disabled person’s potential. Always address them with “people-first language” and “People with a disability.” Do not use terms like “the disabled” or “the handicapped” and never refer to or call people by their disabilities. For example, do not say “she is dyslexic” instead say “she has dyslexia”.

• Use a sign language interpreter if you don’t know the sign language. Speak to them directly and not to the interpreter and maintain your eye contact with the person.
• Speak to the person in normal tones and do not shout.
• Indian National Education Policy 2020has stated that Indian sign language will be standardized for all the students to learn and use sign language.

Individuals who have speech disabilities

• When you do not understand what the person is telling you, ask the person to repeat what they said and then repeat back to ensure that you have understood.
• Do not attempt to finish the sentence for the person.
• In a conversation, if the person is not able to communicate you can ask the person to convey the message through writing on a paper or communication device.

A person with mental health disabilities, learning disabilities, autism spectrum, mild hearing loss, and ADD.

• Take the person to a quiet room.
• Repeat and Rephrase what you said to them.
• Change the pace of communication.

Concession for the Learning disabled children

• 25% Extra time is provided for the children during exams.
• Oral Test along with the written examinations are provided for the standard I to IX
• Writer/ typewriter can be assigned for the children during their examinations.
• Question papers to be read out to the student.
• Exemption from the Second and Third Languages.
• The students can use Calculator at Class X Examination
• Spelling errors and incorrect sentence construction in the exams can be ignored.
• Physiology-Hygiene and Home Science instead of Science & Arithmetic
• Students from grade I to IV errors of interchanging of computation sign and number reversal to be ignored.
• Errors in respect of showing directions in Geography to be ignored.
• Students between Standards I & IX are exempted from drawing diagrams, graphs, and charts.
• Marks for such questions proportionately distributed to the other questions or students to be provided with supplementary questions.
• 20% consolidated grace marks in one or more subjects
• Students are permitted to write in ordinary print
• Exempted from having to write answers in detail during exams

The procedure to get the certificate for Special Needs

The Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities, The Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment, Govt. of India has implemented Unique ID for persons with disabilities. Each person with the disability will get a Unique  Disability ID (UDID) to maintain or carry. They will not need multiple copies of documents, maintain, and carry multiple documents as the card is enough to identify.

• The UDID card will be the single document of identification, verification of the disabled for availing various benefits in future.
• The UDID Card will also help in stream-lining the tracking of the physical and financial progress of beneficiaries at all levels of hierarchy of implementation – from Village level, Block level, District level , State level and National level.