India
From April 1, UDID enrollment mandatory for 17 centrally supported schemes for persons with disabilities | India News
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NEW DELHI: Starting April 1, the government is preparing to make it mandatory to provide the centrally-issued Unique Disability Identification number, or an enrolment number along with the disability certificate issued by states for those who do not have the UDID.
The number will help to avail the benefits of schemes like scholarships for students offered by the ministry of social justice’s department of empowerment of persons with disabilities (DEPwD) and its associated organisations. In all, 17 schemes have been listed in an office memorandum issued earlier this month.
In the memorandum to the heads of various organisation and institutions implementing the schemes, DEPwD has stated that “in order to bring transparency and to reduce the burden of paperwork on the PwDs, the UDID will be mandated for various schemes of DEPwD and its associated organisations like the National Trust, Rehabilitation Council of India and all National Institutes and Composite Regional Centres among others.”
It further stated that in case the UDID number is not available, an enrolment number along with the certificate of disability shall be mandatory. Under the project that took off in 2016, UDID cards are issued to PwDs based on the evaluation and assessment of the type and percentage of disability.
The list of 17 schemes where this will apply include the various scholarship schemes like the pre- and post-matric scholarship for students with disabilities; assistance to disabled persons for purchase and fitting of aids and appliances; registration and treatment at national institutes; day care and health insurance scheme under the National Trust, among others.
The move has raised concern with disability rights activists from National Platform For The Rights Of The Disabled (NPRD) which has chapters in 14 states writing a letter to DEPwD secretary Rajesh Aggarwal. They have called for the withdrawal of the memorandum and ask the government to instead focus on making the card universally valid and acceptable across all government (central and states) ministries, departments, boards and agencies. According to NPRD this is not the case as yet.
“While it may be desirable that all disabled persons procure the UDID card, it cannot and should not be imposed on them,” Muralidharan, general secretary, NPRD said in the letter to the DEPwD. The activist further draws attention to the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016 only lays down the universal validity of the disability certificate and does not impose any obligation on the certificate holder.
The NPRD also cites DEPwD’s annual report of 2021-22 where it is stated that out of a total disabled population of 2.68 crore as per 2011 census, around 1.74 have been issued disability certificates as of January 2022. As far as UDID cards go, officials told TOI that so far about 90.70 lakh people have got the number and over five lakh applications are estimated to be pending at the state level. This reflects that there is a long way to go as a significantly large number of PwDs still don’t have UDIDs and going by the legacy data many don’t even have the disability certificates issued by states.
However, when TOI reached out to senior officials about the concerns being raised they said that “they will monitor the implementation from April 1 continuously to ensure nobody is deprived of any scheme of the department” and “steps are being taken to simplify and expedite issue of certificates under the UDID project as well to expand coverage”.
The number will help to avail the benefits of schemes like scholarships for students offered by the ministry of social justice’s department of empowerment of persons with disabilities (DEPwD) and its associated organisations. In all, 17 schemes have been listed in an office memorandum issued earlier this month.
In the memorandum to the heads of various organisation and institutions implementing the schemes, DEPwD has stated that “in order to bring transparency and to reduce the burden of paperwork on the PwDs, the UDID will be mandated for various schemes of DEPwD and its associated organisations like the National Trust, Rehabilitation Council of India and all National Institutes and Composite Regional Centres among others.”
It further stated that in case the UDID number is not available, an enrolment number along with the certificate of disability shall be mandatory. Under the project that took off in 2016, UDID cards are issued to PwDs based on the evaluation and assessment of the type and percentage of disability.
The list of 17 schemes where this will apply include the various scholarship schemes like the pre- and post-matric scholarship for students with disabilities; assistance to disabled persons for purchase and fitting of aids and appliances; registration and treatment at national institutes; day care and health insurance scheme under the National Trust, among others.
The move has raised concern with disability rights activists from National Platform For The Rights Of The Disabled (NPRD) which has chapters in 14 states writing a letter to DEPwD secretary Rajesh Aggarwal. They have called for the withdrawal of the memorandum and ask the government to instead focus on making the card universally valid and acceptable across all government (central and states) ministries, departments, boards and agencies. According to NPRD this is not the case as yet.
“While it may be desirable that all disabled persons procure the UDID card, it cannot and should not be imposed on them,” Muralidharan, general secretary, NPRD said in the letter to the DEPwD. The activist further draws attention to the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016 only lays down the universal validity of the disability certificate and does not impose any obligation on the certificate holder.
The NPRD also cites DEPwD’s annual report of 2021-22 where it is stated that out of a total disabled population of 2.68 crore as per 2011 census, around 1.74 have been issued disability certificates as of January 2022. As far as UDID cards go, officials told TOI that so far about 90.70 lakh people have got the number and over five lakh applications are estimated to be pending at the state level. This reflects that there is a long way to go as a significantly large number of PwDs still don’t have UDIDs and going by the legacy data many don’t even have the disability certificates issued by states.
However, when TOI reached out to senior officials about the concerns being raised they said that “they will monitor the implementation from April 1 continuously to ensure nobody is deprived of any scheme of the department” and “steps are being taken to simplify and expedite issue of certificates under the UDID project as well to expand coverage”.
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