The Nagaland government has notified that 4 per cent jobs in government department and free travel concessions in Nagaland State Transport buses for persons with disabilities (PwDs).
This was stated in the Nagaland social welfare department’s golden jubilee souvenir released recently.
Reaffirming its commitment to widen the welfare programmes for the PwDs, the social welfare department said a disability park is under construction near Kohima while it issued 6,392 identity cards to them in all the districts of the state.
“Scholarships for PwDs are being provided at the rate of Rs 300 per month and totally blind pension is also provided at Rs 300 per month. In addition, one per cent seat is being reserved in three Eklavya Model Residential Schools for disabled students,” it stated.
The department stated that under the Scheme for Implementation of Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016, nine deputy commissioner’s offices in the district headquarters have been made barrier-free and the remaining are also under proposal besides eight colleges have also been made barrier-free.
Inclusive education of disabled children through Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan is being initiated and trainings are being imparted to the teachers besides some special schools for the disabled children in the state.
Stating that post-identification of PwDs has been notified the department said the Blind School-cum-Vocational Training Centre is on the verge of completion in Dimapur.
Other initiatives include constitution of medical boards for certification of PwDs in all the districts.
It said the National Institute of Empowerment for Persons with Mental Disability has distributed teaching-learning materials kits to various identified schools in Nagaland during 2017-18.
There is a proposal, under the New India Assurance Co Ltd, to provide affordable health insurance cover to PwDs like blindness, low vision, leprosy cured, hearing impairment, loco-motor disability, mental retardation and mental illness.