New Delhi, December 3: “International Day of Persons with Disabilities must be renamed as ‘International Day of Persons with Special Abilities’, to reflect the enormous potential and capabilities that differently-abled people posse and to dispel the stigma that society attaches to disability,” said Vice President M. Venkaiah Naidu today while addressing the gathering after presenting the National Awards for the Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities.
The Vice President emphasized that a change in society’s attitude towards disability is crucial and added that differently-abled persons are not objects of ‘sympathy’ and ‘pity’ and must instead be given ‘empathy’ and ‘support’. He conferred the National Awards on Individuals, Institutions, Organizations and State, district etc. for their outstanding achievements and work done towards empowerment of Persons with Disabilities (PwDs).
Expressing deep concern at the evidently severe problems faced by differently-abled, in terms of their social and economic conditions, Naidu said that we must build an inclusive society that is respectful and sensitive to the needs of the differently-abled. He spoke of the need to provide right nutrition and care to pregnant mothers and young children and to create good and accessible medical facilities across rural India.
Stating that early identification of disability is crucial, he said that it would enable us to undertake effective interventions from the beginning for rehabilitation measures and empowerment of the affected persons.
Referring to government reports that say road injuries caused 65% more disabilities in 2016 than in 1990, the Vice President called for improving road safety and spreading awareness about safe driving. He termed the recent amendments in Motor Vehicles Act as a step in the right direction.
Naidu said that all schools must strive to inculcate sensitivity towards disability in children early in their lives. He applauded mainstream Indian cinema for creating many appreciable movies on the topic of disability and said that it is a good trend that needs to be further encouraged to change people’s perception about disability.
Observing that creating accessible environment for persons with disabilities is of paramount importance, the Vice President said that there is a need to develop collaborative efforts among all stakeholders for developing barrier free environment for the Persons with Disabilities. He urged the corporate and the private entities to take all steps possible to make their infrastructure accessible to persons with disabilities.