Of the 50,000 vacancies announced in the Punjab government in 2021, four per cent quota will be for people with disabilities (PwDs). Social Security, Women and Child Development Minister Aruna Chaudhary announced this quota in various departments. That means, about 2,000 jobs will go to PwDs or divyangjan.
The departments of education, sports, transport and so on, have been directed to regularly review programmes and schemes for PwDs and expedite the digitisation of various cards for the disabled, such as Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan Card and Job Card. Till date, the Social Security Department has received over 3.5 lakh applications for the Unique Disability Identification (UDID) card. Of these, over two lakh cards have already been processed.
The unique ID is issued via a centralised UDID portal under the Department of Empowerment of PwDs of the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment. The Health Ministry has recently decided to include the Unique Disability Identification (UDID) number issued by the Central government to persons with disabilities to the already existing list of documents of prescribed photo IDs for COVID-19 vaccination.
The Government of Punjab has already announced the enhancement of social security pension for all sections, including PwDs, from Rs 750 to Rs 1,500, with effect from July 1.
Instructions have been given to identify 35 acres of land for a stadium for para players so that the construction work can begin soon. Provisions will also be made for disabled-friendly parks, bus stands and other public places.
