Treat them with ‘empathy’ not ‘sympathy’ says VP Naidu after launching Deen Dayal Divyangjan Sahajya scheme

Guwahati, December 4: After launching ‘Deen Dayal Divyangjan Sahajya Scheme’ for the welfare of physically challenged people, Vice President Venkaiah Naidu spoke to encourage the equal respect and dignity for Divyangs. Addressing the gathering, Naidu said that stigmatization and discrimination cannot be tolerated by any civilized society and people with disabilities have every right to live with dignity. 

Further addressing the gathering after launching Deen Dayal Divyangjan Sahajya Scheme, Vice President said that according to United Nations, a disability is a condition or function judged to be significantly impaired relative to the usual standard of an individual of their group. The impairment could be physical, sensory, cognitive, intellectual, mental illness and could relate to any of the various types of chronic diseases, he added.

 

The Vice President said that people with disability need to be treated with empathy and not sympathy. They do not want to be pitied upon but want to be provided with opportunities that will enable them to overcome their handicaps, he added.

The Vice President complimented the Government of Assam for its proposal to provide Rs.5,000 for medical treatment as a one-time grant-in-aid for each of the 4,50,000 Divyangs in the State under Deen Dayal Divyangjan Sahajya Achani and for allocating Rs.250 Crore for the scheme. He further said that he was happy to know that the Government of Assam has introduced a new Act, called “Assam Employees PRANAM Act, 2017”, under which each government employee is compelled to contribute 10% of his/her salary towards taking care of his/her parents, including persons with disabilities. He advised other State Governments to emulate Assam Government’s scheme in view of the growing population of the elderly in India.

The Vice President appealed all people to strive to build an inclusive New India where none is discriminated, especially persons with disabilities, and where all Indians are equally benefited by economic prosperity and growth.