Displaced PwDs appeal for special attention

By Our Staff Reporter
IMPHAL, Dec 26 :  Displaced Persons with Disabilities (PwD)  including women and children have  specific basic requirements  which are not always common with other IDPs, and as such, they need special attention from the authorities.
The Sangai Express visited several relief camps and interacted with PwDs on how they have been coping with the harsh reality of living in relief camps for over two years and seven months.
At Sawombung relief camp, mother of a child with disabilities told The Sangai Express that the entire family have been living together in a small room, thereby enduring extreme hardships and inconveniences.
“When we were at home, my husband and sons were engaged in agricultural activities and they were able to earn a steady income, though not much. From this small, steady income, we were able to cater to the special needs of my physically challenged child”, the mother said.
She said that she could no longer meet the special  needs of her disabled child as the family have been deprived of their meagre source of income and urged the Government to look into the special and specific needs of PwDs living in relief camps.
Thounaojam Ranjanba  from Gwaltabi, who completed  Class XII  from Ananda Higher Secondary School as a displaced student and currently doing BA first semester at Biramangol College, said that a team of Social Welfare  officials came to Sawombung relief camp and gave him a hearing aid.
But the hearing aid stopped functioning just after two-three months, he said.
As it was said that the non-functional hearing aid could be replaced, Ranjanba went to the Social Welfare Department and then to an officer’s place at Uripok. But the officer was not found at his place.
Even after replacing the battery, the hearing aid did not last even one month, he said.
When Ranjanba approached the Social Welfare Department for the second time, he was told that the hearing aid could not be given twice in a year.
Later, volunteers of an NGO who came together with popular singer Hamom Sadananda gave Ranjanba a chargeable hearing aid.
Even though Ranjanba is using the particular  hearing aid till date, it has started malfunctioning and sounds are not heard properly.
Ranjanba said that he is in need of a hearing aid urgently.
He said that Phairembam Loyangamba who is also staying at Sawombung relief camp has not been using the hearing aid given by the Social Welfare Department because it makes a buzzing sound.
Loyangamba from Gwaltabi also wants a chargeable hearing aid.
One Thokchom Usha Devi from Khuga Tampak, Churachandpur, currently taking refuge at Akampat Ideal Girls’ College relief camp, said that one of his sons who is mentally retarded gets Rs 1500 per month as caregiver allowance under the Chief Ministergi Sotharabasingi Tengbang (CMST).
According to information collected from the Social Welfare Department, there are 333 PwDs among IDPs staying in different relief camps.
Social Welfare Director Anna Arambam claimed that the department has been providing all the requirements of PwDs in relief camps.
Unique Disability Identity Cards have been generated and handed over to 206 PwDs. But Aadhaar enrolment of eight displaced PwDs could not be completed as there were certain problems in the process of capturing their biometric data, she said.
So far, 96 PwDs living in relief camps have been enrolled for caregiver allowance under CMST. They have been given caregiver allowance of Rs 1500 per month for four months during 2024-25, Anna Arambam said.
She said that necessary aid and appliances have been given to 168 displaced PwDs.
In the meantime, six aged displaced PwDs were shifted from relief camps to old age homes so as to make them more comfortable.
Out of them, two have gone back to their respective homes, the Social Welfare Director said.
For the convenience of PwDs, the Social Welfare Department has given one wheelchair each to 346 relief camps across the State, she added.
Social Welfare (PwD) Commissioner Waikhom Birahari too claimed that several benefits are being provided to PwDs after allotting them Unique Disability Identity Cards under the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act 2016.
Appliances and tools like hearing aid, wheelchair etc given by the Social Welfare Ministry are all quality products even if they are not as good as the costly ones sold at markets, Birahari said.
The durability of such appliances given by the Social Welfare Ministry depends on the users. For example, a hearing aid may not work if it gets wet or immersed in water.
If any hearing aid is not working due to manufacturing defects, the Social Welfare Department will definitely replace it, he said.
The Social Welfare (PwD) Commissioner said that PwDs living in relief camps may contact him on 8131947029 if they need any appliance or aid.
People suffering blindness, low vision, hearing impairment, locomotor disability, dwarfism, intellectual disability, mental illness, autism, cerebral palsy, muscular dystrophy,   specific learning disabilities, speech and language disability, Thalassemia, Hemophilia, Sickle Cell Disease, Multiple Sclerosis, Parkinson's Disease, chronic neurological conditions and multiple disabilities may apply for Unique Disability Identity (UDID) card, and the rights and benefits guaranteed thereof.
PwDs are given free education including medical and engineering courses as well as scholarship. Four per cent seats are reserved for PwDs in appointment to Government jobs, Birahari said.
He also appealed to all PwDs who do not yet posses UDID cards to contact the Social Welfare Department for generation of these cards.
He further appealed to PwDs to inform the Social Welfare Department if they face discrimination or harassment or disrespect, and assured that the department will take up necessary action as per the PwD Act.