request for the passage of rpwd bill 2014 swabhiman giant...

Preparatory Meeting in State Nodal Ofce - Swabhiman

A preparatory meeting was held at OSDN's State nodal ofce - Swabhiman ofce on October 2016 under the chairmanship of Dr. Sruti Mohapatra. K. C. Pandab convener west zone, Ajaya Jena, President Parivaar - Odisha. Saubhagini Sahoo and Mihir Mohanty members of OSDN were also present.

The meeting was for preparatory discussion of awareness, advocacy and survey programs. The network has decided to do block level awareness activities, advocacy programs and total survey of PwDs.

Request for the passage of RPwD Bill 2014

On 28th November 2016 OSDN chapter Sundargarh organised a meeting with its members for the smooth passage of RPwD Bill and did a rally with more than 30 divyangs and parents of the disabled. Then on 29th November the meeting's discussion was conned to 5 points as suggestions to be added to the RPwD Bill and sent to the state government through ADM. The 5 points were :-

1. Participation of persons with disabil it ies in the Panchayat election.

2. Pension amount to be increased, minimum a person should get Rs 1000.

3. Special scheme project for severely disabled should be introduced.

4. Persons should be supported with a subsidy of petrol (50 %) who ride scooters.

5. To pass the RPwD Bill in the ear 2016.

Editor

Dr. Sruti Mohapatra

Sub-Editor

Sarah Banoo

Giant Leaps Forward

Giant Leaps Forward Volume-6, Issue-1, Page-1

Swabhiman celebrated Word Braille Day on 4th January. Around 30 students with visual impairement from 13 schools - Gangadhar N u a s , K o t o b i d y a d h a r p u r U p s , MaaBhuasuniVidyapitha, Kujimahal Pups, Makund Prasad UGUPS, JayamangalNups, Lahanga Ps, JamujhariPs,Auranga UGUPS, Kahakundu Ps, Lingaraj NUPS, Bhabagrahi Model School for the Signhtless and R. N. UNPS were given Braille kits. The program started at 10am with registration of the students, Block resource persons and Escorts. Mihir Mohanty Program Manager,

Swabhiman welcomed the guests, Dipti Mohanty, Director SNM Group, Polly Pattanaik, Principal, Mother's Public School and Dr. Sruti Mohapatra, Chief Executive, Swabhiman.Deepika Sutuar and DadantaPani, class 7 of Bhabagrahi Model School for the Sightless spoke about Louis Braille. Dipti Mohanty, addressed the students and encouraged them by giving examples of her classmates with visual impairment. The way they use to write their notes so quickly with the slate and old newspaper. She also motivated the students to pursue their hobbies and to be determined in their career. Her address was followed by Polly Pattanaik's address. Dr. Sruti Mohapatra addressed the gathering and welcomed both the guests cum well-wishers of Swabhiman. She explained the duty of a teacher towards a child in a school. “Apart from parents a child spends maximum time in the school and a teacher plays a vital role in the child's life”, said Dr. Mohapatra.

Braille kits (Braille slate, Stylus, Taylor Frame, and Taylor Frame Types)were disturbed to the students.Braille print of Rights of Persons with Disability (RPwD) Act 2016 to the teachers of each school and Braille calendar to visually impaired students from standard one to seven were also distributed. The Program was coordinated by Assistant Project Ofcer Lipsa Priyadarshini.

Happy New Year. We are back with the latest issue of Giant

Leaps Forward after a lull of ve years. We hope to bring the

world to your digital screens. In this rst issue of 2017 we

have the activities of Swabhiman like distribution of Braille

kits in the Braille day, initiative in linkage of youths with

disabilities to employment, motivating donors for blood

donation camp, and Make a Wish activity in the paediatric

ward of Acharya Harihar Regional Cancer Centre, Katak.

The youth conclave and the state level training for divyang

youth also nds mention. In the pages in international news

it has the latest of disability sector from round the globe.

Disability groups hail court's support for wheelchair user

on bus in Yorkshire, Government of Canada is improving

the accessibility for PwDs within their work place,

invention of a toy for children with developmental

disabilities in Las Vegas, a penalty for taxi drivers in refusal

to take wheelchair users in Britain and the violation of rights

of 37 PwDs who were detained in an institution in Mexico.

In National News, the states highlights related to disability

have found space. Highlights from Chennai, introduction

of a project for empowering divyangs in Nagpur,

educational barriers faced by divyangs in Guwahati,

differently abled and underprivileged couples tying the

knot in Delhi from different adaptive clothing in Chennai

and a festival for celebrating disability and diversity reect

the process of inclusion that has started making strides in

India.

From the Editor’s DeskWorld Braille Day


(State Disability Information and Resource Centre)

A-98, Budhanagar, Bhubaneswar, Odisha, India, Pin - 751006

Tel. : 0674-2313313/09238106667, Fax : 0674-2313313/2311957/2311964

Email : [email protected], Website : www.swabhiman.org

Founded in 2001, Swabhiman is a registered nonprot, a cross disability organization, advocating for and serving persons with disabilities in Odisha, India and South Asia. It advocates for the human rights-based approach to disability implying that all persons with disabilities need to participate in all spheres of society on an equal basis with their non-disabled peers.

Swabhiman has been in the forefront of several policy changes that have positively impacted the lives of persons with disabilities. It specically focuses on supporting education, strengthening youth for availing employment opportunities, increasing public awareness on the issue of disability, working towards accessible cities and conducting research for enabling advocacy.

Swabhiman works at the international level with DPI (Disabled People’s International), at national level with NDN (National Disability Network), and in local level with its network (Odisha State Disability Network) of district chapters to create a strong and impressive network of civil rights advocates promoting and protecting rights of persons with disabilities at all levels.

About Swabhiman


Youth Leadership Training and Empowerment Programme (YLTEP)

We are building the capacities of college going youth with disabilities by providing leadership training with an aim to educate and empower them. Collaborating with OSBC (Odisha State Beverages Corporation Limited) Swabhiman organised 2nd youth leadership training and empowerment program (YLTEP) after successful completion of 1st Regional YLTEP in 2015. In January 4th Regional of 2nd Youth Leadership Training and Empowerment Program was inaugurated in Baripada (Northern Region) on 17th January 2017. 27 youth with disabilities from 6 districts (Mayurbhanj, Kendujhar, Balasore, Bhadrak, Anugul and Dhenkanal) of Odisha participated in the three days residential

training in North Odisha University, Baripada from 17th to 19th January. Participants were provided a 3 days residential training on soft skills development, basic computer literacy, leadership qualities, group activities, and workshops. They interacted with other youth of their region, listen and interacted with experts. A session on RPwD act and access audit was also organised for the participants and conducted access audit to understand the nuances of accessible building. The training program was coordinated by Project ofcer Swadhin Khatua and Assistant Project Ofcer Tapas Jena.

State Level Youth Leadership Training and Empowerment Programme

After the completion of regional level we organised second edition of state level youth leadership training and empowerment program (YLTEP) after successful completion of 4 regional levels (Southern region in Koraput with 25 YwDs, Northern region in Baripada with 27 YwDs, Costal region in Puri with 25 YwDs and Western region in Sambalpur with 28 YwDs). 60 selected participants from all the four regions attended a 4 days training program (26th January to 29th January 2017) in CYSD (institutional Area, Gangadhar Meher Marg). In the state level program they interacted with other youths of their age from different parts of Odisha, listen and interacted with successful role models from India, got a

platform to discuss socio-political and career issues, shared experience and evolved advocacy agendas. Got the opportunity to hear great personalities starting from spiritual aspects to software and technology. The participants celebrated Republic day by hosting ag and singing patriotic songs under the guidance of Swadhin Pradhan (visually impaired) and Nibedita Pradhan (visually impaired). Experts took sessions on quiz on India, effective communication, interview skills, India's freedom history, SDGs, and many more. Special sessions on topics, Active Citizenship by Ketan Kothari (VI) of Mumbai, Role of Youth in Nation Building by Swami Samarpanananda Ji Maharaj, Hariharananda Gurukulum, Puri, Rising above Challenges and Employment Opportunities for YwDs by Sandeep Kanabar, (SIHI) Principal, Software Engineer, Chennai. Each day ended with talent show where the participants got a platform to showcase their talents. The state level training program was coordinated by Project ofcer Swadhin Khatua and Assistant Project Ofcer Tapas Jena.


Linkage to Employment

On 19th January Swabhiman organised a Linkage to Employment program for youth with disabilities. Swabhiman invited Sudeep Bhatt representative from Shahi Expo, a garment unit and Manoj Kumar from Centurioun University. 74 YwDs across Odisha from Puri, Jagatsinghpur ..... came forward and participated in a half a day long program. Sudeep Bhattexplained the interviews about the functioning of their garment expo. He talked with the candidates asked their areas of interest and selected 17 YwDs to take training for the post of SMO (Sewing Machine Operator). The training period will vary from 45 days to 2 months. After training the continuing youths will be hired by the company.

Manoj Kumar from Centurioun University also joined with our youths and shared the history of their responsibility of their establishments. He motivated them to take training on hospitality management and in tailoring. He shared about the opportunities one can get after taking the hospitality training with handsome packages. The Program was coordinated by Team Leader Asit Kumar Behera and Project Ofcer Jyoti Prasanna Pattnaik.

“I always dreamt of earning my livelihood but the think I missed was the motivation and support sometimes the lack was because of concern and sometimes beco=ause of my disability. But I am happy to be associated with Swabhiman. I am selected and I will give my best to do my work with perfection”, expressed Pramodini Sahoo, speech and hearing impaired.

“Till today morning I was in doubt. Why a company will take me the one who can't walk without support but after the program ended I am selected for the training program of Shahi Expo”, said Sunita Sethi, orthopedically impaired.

Odisha Youth Conclave

After completing the state youth leadership training and empowerment program participants attended the 2nd Odisha Youth Conclave on 30th January. The conclave was organised with an aim to give inspiration and guidance from top exponents of identied elds like government ofcers, spiritual gurus, social activists, entrepreneurs, academicians, political leaders, dancers and celebrities to our participants. In the esteem presence of Gurujee H. H Paramhansa Prajananandaji Maharaj, Spiritual Head Kriya Yoga International, Hariharananda Gurukulam, Puri, Gokul Chandra Pati, Ex Chief Secretary, Odisha and Dr. Sruti Mohapatra, Chief Executive, Swabhiman the 2nd conclave was inaugurated by lighting of the lamp. The conclave was divided into four sessions (Conclave Conversations, Conclave Debate, Conclave Satire and Conclave Glamour). Invitees were Padmashree Tulasi Munda, Social Activist, Keonjhar, Kalpana Das, CSR Ofcer, LANCO Group, and mountaineer Anugul, and Dr. Ketna Mehta, Associate Dean, Research Welingkar Management Institute, Mumbai, Founder of Nina Foundation. Niten Chandra, Principal Secretary, Dept. of Social Security and Empowerment of Persons with Disability, GoO, Arti Ahuja, Principal Secretary, Dept. Of Tourisim, GoO and out station invitee Dr. Komal Kamra (orthopedically challenged), Associate Professor of Zoology, SGTB Khalsa College University of Delhi. Gyana Hota, the renowned Hasiya Kavi, Padmashree Ileana Citraristi, Odissi Dance Guru, Sabyasachi Mishra, Cine Artist, Tanaya Patnaik, Executive Director Kanak News and Radio Choklate 104FM, Eastern Media Limited, Bhubaneswar, and Jitendra Biswal, Founder and Head Swadhikar, Bargarh and Cine Artist. The program was coordinated by Swadhin Khatua, Program Coordinator and Tapas Jena, Assistant Program Coordinator.


The First Accessible Vehicle in Odisha

On 30th January rst accessible XUV in Odisha was u n v e i l e d b y G u r u j e e H . H . P a r a m h a n s a Prajananandaji Maharaj. The One in a wheelchair doesn't have to transfer himself through a wooden base to get into a car. Wheelchair will move into the car through a lift and the person can smoothly get in and can travel in the Mahindra Xylo XUV.

Blood Donation

Under our awareness activity Swahiman organised its 8th blood donation camp in the loving memory of father of Nation, Bapu, in its ofce on 31st January 2017. We are organising this camp from last 7 years in part of our round the year activity. This year (8th year) we motivated 64 donors and successfully collected 300 ml from each donor. Donors were students and professionals. The guest of the day was Dr. Gyanabrata Mohanty, Secretary, Indian Red Cross Society. The program was coordinated by Assistant Project Ofcer Lipsa Priyadarshini

Meeting with Hon'ble MP Siddhant Mohapatra

On 12th January 2017 Honorable MP Sidhant Mohapatra visited Swabhiman. He being a member of the railway committee shared his thoughts and took suggestions from the chief executive Dr. Sruti Mohapatra for the improvements that can be done for divyangs travel in railways. He is attending the Railway Consultative Committee in Darjeeling on 20th.

Discussions were around accessibility in reaching the coach for divyangs with ease and independently, color of coach, placement, tactile pathway, accessibility in the ticket counters, mobility of wheelchairs and many more. He shared many important things about railway safety with the team, about developments in western countries and his personal agenda of road safety. He rides on his bicycle every morning and spreads the awareness on road safety, importance of driving with a helmet and following trafc rules. Hon'ble MP, being a famous ollywood actor took many photos with the staff.

Prativa Anwesana

Prayas is a foundation established i n Gobindpur, P u r i b y l o c a l youths. It encourages the school g o i n g children by

organising an event “Prativa Anwesana” once a year where different competitions takes place. Its second year celebration was held on 7th January 2017 in Gobindpur Upper Primary School. Dr. Sruti Mohapatra shared the stage as chief guest along with dignitaries Durga Charan Nayak, Saktiprasanna Mohanty, Santos Nayak, Purna Chandra Nayak and Mihir Mohanty.

Dr. Mohapatra interacted with the children shared her childhood school memories and inspired children by saying "Dream Big". She added that students should always be regular in their studies and respect teachers. 300 students of different schools of the village participated in different competitions like drawing, debate, essay writing, song and solo dance. For encouragement the competitors were awarded with prizes which were supported by Swabhiman.

The event not only ended with the competitions and prizes but also the students were sensitized on disability simulation activities. They experienced the mobility in wheelchair and walked in dark being blindfolded.

IIT, Bhubaneswar

Swabhiman has started spreading throughout the capital. Social welfare society of Indian Institute for Technology (IIT) Bhubaneswar organised a children festival - Souls for solace social welfare society of IIT Bhubaneswar, organised a children's festival on 13th January 2017. With the invitation from the institute we mobilised 27 children with disabilities from different ICRCs (Inclusive Child Resource Centre) established in 8 different government schools of Bhubaneswar aiming to achieve holistic education for CwDs of urban poor areas of the city to the festival.Children participated in different competitions like art, music, dance – solo and group with around 100 non disabledcompetitors of government schools. Chief Executive was invited by the organizers as chief guest. She inspired all with her speech and distributed prizes to the winners. The winners of art competition were Guddu Das, orthopedically impaired as 1st, Sambit Das as 2nd and Niranjan Sahoo, speech stammering as 3rd. In solo song Guddu Das got 1st and Sathak Diwedi 2nd. In solo dance Partha Sarathi Nayak 1st, Prerana Parida 2nd and Kiran Behera 3rd. In group dance Barsha Rani Behera, orthopedically challenged, Subrasus Mohapatra, Pravati Patra (Dwarsim) and Chandan Manthan. All the winners and participants representing Swabhiman were from the slums.

Dazzling performances by differently abled talents compelled the judges award them with a special prize with a tag "Award for Bravery". Manisha Priyadarshini dancing in her wheelchair and Sarthak Diwedi, autistic, got special awards for bravery. Project Ofcer Poonam Naik, Volunteers and interns coordinated the divyang children for the program.


Grand welcome to 2017

Swabhiman team welcomed 2017 with a potlock lunch, game of secret Santa and sharing life's experiences and vision on 4th and 5th January, 2017. In potlock each member came with a dish for all, after a scrumptious lunch all played a game named 'Secret Santa'. Everyone brought a gift without any names written on it, being blind folded they moved round the table full of gifts to a music and when the music stopped they put a nger on a gift winning that one. All this fun was followed by sharing of visions, interests and hobbies of their life as they got to know each other better.


Acharya Harihar Regional Cancer Centre, Katak

On 25th of January, 2015 four friends came together to bring smiles on the faces of little kids suffering from cancer and hoping to be cured in the paediatric ward of Acharya Harihar Regional Cancer Centre, Katak. Arthi Ahuja, (Secretary, Dept. of Tourism), Rashmi Sahu (Director, Ruchi), Bindu Sharma (CSR, Jindal) and Dr. Sruti Mohapatra (Chief Executive, Swabhiman) started visiting with volunteers each Monday making them draw, paint, learn craft, and are also giving them classes in English. In this New Year the paediatric ward welcomed the new months by giving their best wishes to their friends in the form of card made by them. On 2nd January each child made a card and got a chance to

close his eyes and select a card for him from all the outputs. Children enjoyed making card for their friends and getting wishes in form of colourful papers made by their ward mates. On 9th January 2017 children learned to make owers and parrots by using color papers and on 16th January children made bunch of owers from color papers. Colourfull bouquets and smiles coloured the winter evening. On 23rd January Children learnt making sh from color papers. Volunteers Sarah Banoo, Lipsa Priyadarshini, Sanjay Kanhar, Abhinash Deuria and Lalatendu Bhoi encouraged and make the children learn new things this month.


Disability groups hail court's support for wheelchair user on bus-Yorkshire

The case, brought by a wheelchair user who was unable to board a bus in Yorkshire, highlights the need for legislative changes, the Supreme Court judgment suggested. A bus services bill is currently going through parliament. Doug Paulley attempted to get on a First Group bus from Wetherby to Leeds in February 2012 but the wheelchair space was being used by a mother with a pushchair

and a sleeping child. The woman rejected the driver's request to move or fold the pushchair and so the driver told Paulley he could not board the vehicle. As a result, he missed his train connection at Leeds and was unable to meet his parents for lunch that day.

Disability rights campaigners have hailed a ruling by the supreme court that bus drivers must try to persuade other passengers to make room for wheelchair users. Drivers may s top the bus “with a v iew to pressurising or shaming recalcitrant non-wheelchair users to move” if they believe a refusal is unreasonable, the judgment declared. In its ruling the court allowed Paulley's appeal to the extent that the driver should have taken further steps to pressurise the non-wheelchair user into making space.

https://www.theguardian.com/society/2017/jan/18/court-backs-wheelchair-user-who-was-stopped-from-boarding-bus-yorkshire-leeds

G o v e r n m e n t o f C a n a d a i m p r o v e s accessibility for Canadians with disabilities within their workplace and communities -Canada

On January 17, the Honourable Carla Qualtrough, Minister of Sports and Persons with Disabilities, visited the centre for child development of the lower mainland to announce the approval of 573 Enabling Accessibility Fund (EAF) projects. The minister highlighted how these projects will help strengthen the Government of Canada's commitment to ensuring greater accessibility and opportunity for Canadians with disabilities in their communities and workplaces.

Quick Facts

The Enabling Accessibility Fund has an annual budget of $15 million.

Since the creation of the Enabling Accessibility Fund, the Government of Canada has funded over 2,890 projects, helping thousands of Canadians gain access to their communities' programs, services and workplaces.

I n J u l y 2 0 1 6 , t h e A c c e s s i b l e C a n a d a w e b s i t e (http://www.Canada.ca/Accessible-Canada) was launched in order to start the online consultations to inform the development of planned federal accessibility legislation. From September 2016 and up to February 2017, the Government of Canada will have conducted 18 public sessions and 9 roundtables in 18 different cities across Canada. A national youth forum was held in November 2016 to seek input from youth with disabilities or youth with relevant work, education.

http://www.accessibilitynewsinternational.com/government-of-canada-improves-accessibility-for-canadians-with-disabilities-within-their-workplaces-and-communities

International News

Doug Paulley was refused access to the bus from Wetherby to Leeds in 2012.

Taxi drivers face ne for refusing to pick up wheelchair users - Britain

Taxi drivers who refuse to pick up wheelchair users or attempt to charge more for transporting them could be ned up to £1,000 (Rs. 83, 387.60 in Indian rupees) and could lose their licence, unless they have an exemption for medical reasons under new laws tackling discrimination. The penalties will come into force from 6 April and will oblige taxi and private hire cars to take wheelchair users in their wheelchair if their vehicles are able to, as well as

Giant Leaps Forward Volume-6, Issue-1, Page-9Giant Leaps Forward Volume-6, Issue-1, Page-8

Chennai : Medikoe, Kickstart Tie-up to Provide Long Term Care, Travel for Disabled Elderly.

After the incident of 75 year old Tenzin Korra, a diabetic patient with a festering open wound on his leg had to get his angiogram done which became a nightmare for his attendants as the ambulance services were provided only for emergencies, an online platform start up came to rescue.

The start up named Medikoe has tied up with Mphasis ' supported ini t iat ive Kickstart. It is hoping to come to rescue of elderly people and the differently disabled seeking long term treatment. With the collaboration, patients and their attendants will be able to plan out long-term treatment and travel.

Medikoe, which recently got $100,000 in angel funding from Anil Menon, CEO of CMS Computers, said that 'many of us take normal activities such as boarding a bus or climbing a ight of stairs for granted. For senior citizens with arthritis, muscular dystrophy or severe immobility issues, doctor visits can be gruelling. And calling an ambulance for weekly consultations can be drastic. So our packages will include routine events such as doctor consultations.'

Nagpur : 'Saksham' to empower disabled.

DivyangSahayta Kendra, an init iative of social o r g a n i z a t i o n S a k s h a m , w a s i n a u g u r a t e d a t MadhavNetrapedhi, Pratap Nagar on 4 January 2017. The aim of starting the help centre is to provide disabled persons information about many schemes of the state and central governments.

The help centre will provide necessary information to people suffering from various disabilities and guide them on education, jobs, government schemes and many others. Reservation for disabled in education and jobs is also likely to be increased from the current 3% to 4%, said Kamlesh Kumar Pandey, chief commissioner for persons with disabilities.

Online forms for application for jobs or for any other purposes will be provided there. Disability certicates will be made available to the disabled people. Saksham is also trying to provide free e-rickshaw service to the handicapped. Those disabled persons who need the service will have to just call up the centre for the service.

Saksham also organized a function to celebrate the birth anniversary of Louis BrailleatThengdiSabhagruh, Reshimbagh. Five books in Braille were published at the event. RadhaBorde, JigyasaChawaldhal and Vinod Asudani were felicitated for excellence in their respective eld.

Guwahati : Disabled Boy's wait for a Scribe to Clear Class X Board Exam.

As a year ends and a new year begins, RupamKalita, a physically challenged boy from SonariChapori in upper Assam's Lakhimpur district, wishes to pass his board exam.

He hopes that exams will no longer be a hurdle in the lives of specially-abled children.Rupam, a Class X student, took the board exam for two consecutive years but failed due to lack of a scribe. The education authorities did not provide him one in spite of his repeated pleas. For this young boy, red tape has become the biggest worry now. He is condent that he can pass the exam if the education authorities provide his with a scribe. Rupam is eligible to get a scribe to write for him in the board exams starting from February but the education authorities are reluctant. They did not treat his case with due urgency. Rupam's father who works at a bicycle repairing shop near Dhakhuakhana hopes that someday the district education authorities will listen to their prayers.

National News

Washington DC and Mexico City

January 19, 2017 – Disability Rights International (DRI) and the O'Neill Institute for National and Global Health Law led a case with the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) for the egregious human rights violations against 37 persons with disabilities who were detained at the 'Casa Esperanza' institution in Mexico City, Mexico. Modeled on the US Supreme Court Case of Olmstead v. LC, the case seeks recognition under international law that all people with disabilities have right to live in the community.

DRI investigations revealed that adults and children with disabilities were detained under dangerous, violent, degrading and unhealthy conditions. The victims suffered physical and sexual systematic abuses, forced sterilization, and they experienced the use of restraints and isolation rooms for long periods of time, constituting cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment, including torture. Mexico closed down the abusive Casa Esperanza facility after DRI exposure, but it transferred survivors to other locked institutions. Two have since died. This case seeks reparations for torture – as well a right to safe and decent housing and mental health services in the community.

http://newswise.com/articles/international-case-against-mexico-seeks-recognition-of-the-right-to-community-integration-for-people-with-disabilities-locked-in-institutions

Leka robot is a tool for children with developmental disabilities

One of the biggest and most biting criticism of modern tech is the industry's excessive p u s h t o s o l v e t r i v i a l p r o b l e m s . Occasionally, there is a device which breaks the mold. Leka, a smart toy from a French startup with the same name, is a tiny spherical robot. Instead of dazzling us with cheap tricks, Leka has a purpose; to help c h i l d r e n w i t h a u t i s m a n d o t h e r developmental disabilities better learn and communicate with others.

The device, is aimed at schools and therapy institutions that focus on autism and other conditions. It's designed to either be controlled by a caregiver or put into an autonomous state so children of any ages and even adults with more severe disabilities-can overcome social barriers to learn and progress at their own pace. Because these children often have trouble interacting with others, taking social cues, and learning in traditional environments, toys like Leka help to act as a intermediary. In other words, it's a robot friend that a child with autism can better develop a bond with than an imposing adult.

http://www.theverge.com/ces/2017/1/4/14167590/leka-smart-toy-robot-autism-learning-tool-ces-2017

providing appropriate assistance. It will be an offence to charge any additional fare for the service. The rules will apply across Britain for taxis and private hire vehicles designated as wheelchair accessible – including all black cabs in London and taxis in many other cities.

Drivers discriminating against wheelchair users face nes of up to £1,000 Announcing the legislation, the transport minister, Andrew Jones, said: “We want to build a country that works for everyone, and part of that is ensuring disabled people have the same access to services and opportunities as anyone else – including when it comes to travel”.


51 differently abled and underprivileged couples tied the knot.

A ceremony was organised by Rajasthan-based NGO Narayan Seva Sansthan in west Delhi's Punjabi Bagh area on January 22. The ceremony included 31 differently abled couples from the states of Rajasthan, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh. The celebrations were brought alive by the presence of the family members and friends of the happy couples. the story of visually impaired Satish Kharadia and Ramila Katara brought tears to many eyes. Kharadia got married to Katara, who needs all four limbs to walk. There were also m a n y c a s e s o f a b l e bodied brides or grooms marrying a differently abled spouse.

http://www.thebetterindia.com/83243/different l y - a b l e d - m a s s -wedding-ceremony-delhi/

Adaptive Clothes for Divyangs

In an innovative concept-driven fundraising event, working professionals and students with disabilities presented designer adaptive clothing at a fashion show held on January 8 in Chennai. These showstoppers (students and working professionals with disabilities) graced the ramp with their presence to spread awareness about the need for such clothes.

Shalini Vikasan, the designer behind this concept, got inspiration two years ago. Fresh out of National Institute of Fashion Technology (NIFT), Shalini's creative mind was looking for a new project and it was her loved ones who gave her inspiration.

After designing shirts with magnetic buttons and pants with Velcro for her husband in wheelchair, Shalini designed a one-piece sari for her aunt who is also wheelchair-bound. Her aunt could only wear maxis and being a religious woman, it troubled her that she couldn't go to a temple in that outt. Realising her problem, Shalini designed a one-piece sari with pleats and blouse that can be worn as a housecoat.

An organisation named Vidya Sagar, which runs school for children with disabilities she found her models, a mix of working professionals and students. Before designing the clothes, Shalini talked to each of her models to understand their difculties and tried to incorporate features to ease those problems.

She has designed the clothing in such a manner that the people with disabilities can wear it independently. Designing the party wear has been a wonderful experience, she admits.

http://www.thebetterindia.com/81135/chennai-designer-adaptive-clothing-for-the-disabled/

Panaji : Government Issues Guidelines for Persons with Disabilities in Cinema Halls.

Following the Supreme Court's order stating that all cinema halls in India should play the national anthem before a feature lm and that all present in the hall are obliged to stand up to show respect to it, the ministry of home affairs has issued guidelines for p e r s o n s w i t h d i s a b i l i t i e s , exempting some, but not all, from s t a n d i n g f o r t h e n a t i o n a l a n t h e m . P a r a p l e g i c w r i t e r S a l i l C h a t u r v e d i w h o w a s physically assaulted by a fellow cinema goer at Inox, Panaji, last July because he didn't stand up for the anthem, said he would like to see the guidelines displayed in all cinema halls in English and Konkani to avoid any confusion.

His story went global following the incident and he even wrote to the management asking it to ash a message before the anthem reminding cinema goers of persons with disabilities and senior citizens present in the audience and to request them to refrain from forcing others to stand up.The ministry of home af fa i rs has s ta ted that the department of empowerment of persons with disabilities will suggest further modications in the guidelines as and when required or necessary as the R i g h t s o f P e r s o n s w i t h Disabilities Bill has been passed by both Houses of Parliament which recognizes 21 categories of disabilities where the issues concerning the new categories of disabilities also need to be considered after the notication is issued.


Bhubaneswar : Fest to Celebrate Dissability, Diversity.

In a bid to sensitize people to problems arising from physical disabilities, We Care a travelling festival will showcase lms on the theme from across the globe. Set to commence at the Institute of Engineers from Monday, the two-day festival will see the screening of 23 award-winning lms. These will include shorts, documentaries and full-length feature lms.

The main attraction of this year's festival is the competition of one and ve-minute long lms celebrating diversity. This year, the focus is on cerebral palsy and mental retardation. Experts on the subject will discuss various aspects of the disease and also talk about their treatment and management.

Odisha's 1st single window c o u n t e r f o r D i v y a n g s – Sundargarh Chapter

The activities of our western Odisha chapter through Shraddha in Sundargarh and Rourkela showcases a urry of activities in awareness camps, inauguration of a single window counter, initiatives requesting passage of RPwD Bill 2014 and preparatory meetings in nodal ofce Swabhiman for further improvements in the sector of disability of the state.

A counter to facilitate all the facilities from government to persons with disabilities through a single window counter was inaugurated on 1st November 2016 in the presence of Sj. Sarada Prasad Nayak, Chairman RDA and Monisha Banerjee, ADM Rourkela in Rourkela New Bus stand. More than 85 from 5 blocks (Ebrisa, Lathikata, Kuarmunda, Jagda & Jamsera), 44 wards of Rourkela Municipal Coorsporation and 22 sectors of Rourkela Steel Plant were beneted. The program was conducted by the OSDN-Western Odisha coordinator Kartik Chandra Pandab.

Awareness Camp on Bus Facilities – Rourkela

Odisha State D i s a b i l i t y N e t w o r k ( O S D N ) , S u n d a r g a r h organised an a w a r e n e s s p r o g r a m i n sector 17 bus stand on 17th a n d 1 8 t h N o v e m b e r , 2 0 1 6 . T h e entitlement facilities available for divyangs in buses as per the rule no – LC – TR – 48/2014 – 764/1 was informed to all. The owners, conductors and service providers intentionally do not obey and deny giving the benets. Thou, District Magistrate and Regional Transport Organisation send the letters but the bus owners escaped by saying that they have not received any letter.

Our partner 'Shraddha', met the government ofcers but found no outcomes and decided to organise an awareness camp. More than 100 bus conductors were provided awareness about the entitlement facilities. Kartik Chandra Pandab along with team members of Shraddha conducted the awareness camp from evening 5 pm to 10 pm for two days and sensitized the service providers. The team noted down the details of each bus (Name of owner, registration number, names of conductor, helper and driver, phone numbers of the same). They made a list and sent it to the District Collector and RTO with a letter requesting the buses to accept the concterms and conditions within one month or else they would result in violence.

State News

Odisha State Disability Network (OSDN)

request for the passage of rpwd bill 2014 swabhiman giant...

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