To give a boost to and spread awareness about the rights of people with disability, National Trust is set to kick off its annual nationwide campaign Badhte Kadam from the Capital this Saturday.
A live performance by a violinist from the Magic group (a music group of people with visual impairments) and a group of students with hearing and speech impairments will perform the silent national anthem at Action for Ability Development and Inclusion premises.
A flag off from here will travel to Shimla in the north, Kanyakumari in the south, Imphal in the east, Jodhpur in the west and Nagpur in central India. Various states will hold different cultural and sports events. The flag will then return to Delhi on the eve of World Disability Day.
“As the flag travels from one place to another, we will follow it and collect the aspirations, messages given out at each of these points by people with disability, dignitaries and well wishers and place them centrally at the concluding function,” said a spokesperson.
In its fourth year now, the campaign travelled in loops from Delhi and went to 13 States and one Union Territory in its first year. In the second year, it went to all States, except Jammu and Kashmir and Mizoram and organised 240 melas . Last year, it travelled to all States except Mizoram and Sikkim. This year, it will for the first time, also go to Mizoram.
The campaign aims to generate awareness and sensitise citizens about the rights of persons with disability as enshrined in the constitution and as elaborated in the UN Convention on Rights of Person with Disabilities.
“In order to proceed further into the future and do more than raise awareness, we are going ahead with the theme of ‘Cultural and Social Integration of People with Disability’. This time our target is to reach the unreached areas; target to go up to block/taluk and panchayat level, in addition to the districts,” according to a statement.
The campaign will be inaugurated by Kiran Walia, Minister of Education, Women and Child Development & Social Welfare and Language, Delhi government.
