Differently abled persons staged a protest in front of the Salem Collectorate on Friday highlighting their demands, including financial assistance of ₹3,000.
More than 100 people participated in the protest under the banner of the Salem District Deaf General Welfare Development Association stressing their 19-point demands. They submitted a petition to Collector S. Karmegam regarding their demands. They urged in the petition to provide a 1% reservation for differently abled people with 80% hearing impairment in Group 4 service without conducting exams. Monthly financial assistance be increased to ₹3,000, they said.
Members of the District Deaf Association staging a demonstration in Krishnagiri on Friday. | Photo Credit: N. BASHKARAN
Staff in tahsildar offices, hospitals, and courts should be trained to recognise the signs of the differently abled. Driving licence need to be issued as per court order for hearing impaired persons. Differently abled identity cards should be issued like smart cards and Increase the age of the differently abled to 70 for receiving mobile phones, they added in the petition.
Krishnagiri
Members of Krishnagiri District Deaf Association staged a protest demonstration over a raft of demands on Friday.
Sign language course shall be made mandatory in teachers training institutes, increase disability assistance and the same must be disbursed through the Department of the Differently Abled and not through the Revenue Department, the protesters said.
The State Welfare Board for the Differently Abled must be inducted with the office-bearers of the Deaf Association , the protesters said.
Erode
Urging the State government to fulfill their demands, members of Welfare Association for Hearing Impaired of Erode District staged a sit-in protest on the Collectorate premises in Erode.
Members of Welfare Association for Hearing Impaired of Erode District staging a sit-in protest in Erode. | Photo Credit: M. GOVARTHAN
Members, numbering over 100 mostly women, said that their long-pending demands were not considered by the governments in the State causing hardship to them and their family members. They said that though they have completed studies facing all odds, they were unable to get jobs. Hence, reservation should be provided both in government jobs and in private companies, they said. They also wanted houses to be provided under the government’s subsidy scheme.
When the District Differently-Abled Welfare Officer was holding talks with the protesters, Collector H. Krishnanunni questioned them and asked four representatives to meet him at his office. After listening to their demands, he said that the district administration cannot take any decision to fulfill their demands and added that their grievance would be taken up with the Minister concerned. Later, the protest was withdrawn.
