Morung Express News
Dimapur | September 9
An awareness-cum-sensitization workshop on rehabilitation of persons with disabilities (PWDs), organized by Ali Yavar Jung National Institute for the Hearing Handicapped, Mumbai, DEPwD, Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment, GoI in collaboration with Nagaland State Social Welfare Department and Prodigals’ Home, Dimapur, was held here at Town Hall on Friday.
Deputy Commissioner, Dimapur, Kesonyu Yhome, who was the chief guest, stressed on the need to adopt a paradigm shift in addressing issues relating to PWDs, adding that the “bureaucratic approach” had not been able to deliver the desired results. The DC said the approach should be to shift from “just rehabilitation” of PWDs to their empowerment so that the PWDs can live normal lives and with dignity.
Additional Director, Social Welfare Department, Kewe Kenye, in her address presented an overview of scenario of PWDs in the state and the various programmes undertaken by the government for welfare of PWDs.
Earlier, HoD, Socio-Economic Rehabilitation Department & Nodal Officer-North East (AYJNIHH, Mumbai), R Bhattacharya, highlighted the activities of AYJNIHH.
In the plenary session, the Deaf Biblical Ministry, Dimapur, in their presentation, ‘Overview of hearing disability in Nagaland’, informed that as per the National Programme for Prevention & Control of Deafness (NPPCD), about 1,25,284 persons in Nagaland with a population of 19,88,636 have Hearing Impairment (HI).
Drawing attention on the society’s approach towards such disability, the Ministry said that till the 1980s hearing impaired people were called “mad or crazy” and were the object of ridicule and even considered a curse from God.
“Families hid them from the society and it took many years for society in Nagaland to accept the deaf people as contributing members of the society,” conveyed the Deaf Biblical Ministry.
However, with the change of mindset, between the years 2010-2016 there has been immense development where the persons with HI after their education, have become independent and are involved in different professions. A good number of them, it added, are working in government offices, some self employed, while few of them involved in teaching, others actively involved in sports (some even winning awards).
Maong Jamir, Assistant Director, Prodigals’ Home, who spoke on ‘Scenario of disabilities in Nagaland’, also commented that society considers PWDs as a “curse from God and do not count their abilities while considering them to be an object of charity.” Jamir therefore advocated for effective implementation of Persons with Disabilities (PwDs) Act 1995, and Nagaland State Policy for PwDs while recommending that the state should have State Resource Centre (SRC)/District Resource Centres’ (DRCs) for PwDs, employment and livelihood alternatives for PwDs and intensive/ extensive awareness covering all districts by Office of Disability Commissioner, responsible Government Departments, NGOs and FBOs.
