Two thousand volunteers, about 18,000 phone calls, and 840 hours of dedicated work on computers — that’s what it took to reach help to nearly 3,000 differently-abled persons from the district.
‘Kayyethum Doorathu’, the special adalats conducted by the district administration with the support of the Composite Regional Centre for persons with disabilities, has set a model for the State on how to clear legal hurdles and help the differently-abled receive eligible benefits declared by the State and Central governments.
The efforts for the unique project got on track when the specially constituted medical board, comprising five doctors and three subject experts, agreed to visit the regional camps and clear the maximum number of applications for legal guardianship and medical board certificates. The result was impressive — 4,000 persons who had been missing out on various Central and State government aid programmes due to the lack of relevant certificates managed to secure it at the end of the first phase. The medical camps were usually conducted at the district headquarters only once or twice a year, which restricted the number of people availing the opportunity.
District Collector U.V. Jose, who initiated the special project after witnessing the plight of the differently-abled, said it was for the first time in Kerala that such a big project was coming to a successful end with mass participation and without pooling in of huge funds from the government.
“We have managed to award 2,404 medical board certificates and 747 legal guardianship certificates in the presence of Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan,” he added.
“It began when an elderly woman approached me a few months back narrating her difficulty in clearing a cheque, which she received in the name of her differently-abled child, in the absence of a legal guardianship certificate. My attempts to find similar persons took me to the plight of nearly 10,000 persons,” Mr. Jose told The Hindu . They were voiceless to independently press for their demands and we decided to act for them collectively, he said.
6,000 screened
As many as 6,000 persons were screened in different camps under the leadership of the medical board. Thirty-two special camps were held in convenient locations to clear the applications. It took 26 days to complete the regional sittings and finalise the number of beneficiaries who would be given certificates.
The project coordinators said the district would be able to cover all eligible beneficiaries under the scheme within three months, thereby achieving a new milestone. Survey reports said there remained about 1,500 persons eligible for various certificates to claim Union and State government benefits. At least 10 more regional camps would be held in the months to come, they added.
