Karnataka   

A boon for disabled persons

MYSORE: Heard of disabled-friendly buildings, but how about a “disabled-friendly” website.

In a significant step to enhance the interface between persons with disabilities and the government for promotion and protection of their rights, the official website of the office of State Commissioner for Persons with Disabilities will become disabled-friendly by March.

After this initiative, the office will prevail upon all government departments and agencies to redesign their websites so that people with disabilities could access information at their places for their empowerment.

Disclosing this to The Hindu here on Wednesday, State Commissioner for Persons with Disabilities K.V. Rajanna said his office had discussed the proposal with a team of software professionals who had agreed to design the website that could be used by persons with disabilities, including the visual impaired.

“We get the right of asking others [departments] to support the cause only after we take the lead. Otherwise, others will not take us seriously. Therefore, we have taken the lead and are gearing up to launch our disabled-friendly website by March,” he said.

Mr. Rajanna said it was possible to develop the disabled-friendly website and help persons access it without much difficulty. “There are some requirements that need to be fulfilled. The software professionals with whom we had talks have promised to get the website done using the tools available in designing the websites,” he noted.

The website will have a key feature of online registration of complaints by persons with disabilities. They can access the status report of their complaints on the same day, as a mechanism is being worked out for connecting all the districts with his office for generating reports on a daily basis, the commissioner explained.

“The opportunities available for people with disabilities, the responsibilities of local governments in the welfare of disabled and the steps taken to address injustice to the disabled persons will be prominently highlighted in the initiative,” according to Mr. Rajanna.

The measure, he said, prevented persons with disabilities from going to the respective departments for redressal of grievances. “I am sure the measure will bring the persons closer to his office, and the Directorate of Welfare of Disabled and senior citizens,” he felt.

Videoconference

The commissioner said a videoconference facility would soon be launched at his office in Bangalore for effective implementation of provisions of the Persons with Disability (Equal Opportunities, Protection of Rights and Full Participation) Act, 1995, in all districts and utilisation of 3 per cent of their funds for the welfare of the disabled.

“I will interact with the department concerned and the disabled persons regularly for constant monitoring of their welfare,” he added.

Despite of innumerable appeals of disabled persons to the authorities, nearly 70 government offices in Mysore district are “disabled-unfriendly”. No action had been taken to provide ramps. Facilities had been denied to them.

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