The mandatory special grievance meet for differently abled members which is to be conducted once every three months by the district administration has not been held since the beginning of 2019.
General Secretary (State), Tamil Nadu Crawling Differently Abled Persons Federation, S. Raja, says that grievance meeting usually becomes seminal to those who face challenges in procuring their differently abled identity cards, old age pensions and scholarships.
“Without a grievance meet, there is no space for us to voice our problems and complain about the lack of facilities. Most issues barely get redressed,” he says.
Although the Collector receives petitions every Monday during the weekly grievance meet, most concerns are passed on to officials who barely bother following up, complains Mr. Raja. He says that differently abled people cannot come once a week to get their problems solved due to their physical impediments.
“Since we do not submit petitions weekly and put pressure on officers, our concerns are easily forgotten,” he says.
R. Murugeswari, who is visually challenged, says that she has been seeking housing assistance from the administration as she cannot fend for herself due to her old age. “Nobody has responded yet though I have submitted various petitions over three years,” she says.
Joint General Secretary of the Tamil Nadu Crawling Differently Abled Persons Federation, M. Jeyaraman, says that only members affiliated to organisations and associations are aware of various schemes available for the differently abled.
“If a grievance meet is held, parents of differently abled members will have the space to interact with officials. I am sure most people are unaware that the State government provides ₹1,500 relief to those with 80% disability. The district administration has the responsibility to educate us. The grievance meet is an excellent platform if utilised well,” he says.
A senior officer from the District Differently Abled Welfare office says that the delay in conducting the meet was caused because Model Code of Conduct was in force between March 10 and May 26.
District Revenue Officer P. Selvaraj, who usually chairs the meeting, says that he will soon fix a date after consulting the District Differently Abled Welfare office at the earliest.
