Comments on: Does ‘Disabled’ Have To Mean ‘Invisible’?

By: Shazia Shamim

Shazia Shamim — Fri, 15 Aug 2008 12:27:16 +0000

I did mechanical engineer and its become challenge to get job in this professional because they thought i can’t physically handle all the task. I agreed with the comments of Kannan but hope does not work with me so i did master in computer science and now how a good job…

So don’t relay on hope but try to find a way

By: Kannan

Kannan — Sat, 12 Apr 2008 17:20:59 +0000

Hai I am a physically challenged person I am looking for innovative carrier based on electronics (Power generating sectors)but no one access me to work because i am disabled bad society but still I in confidence one day definitly i will reach my goal and i serve those suffered by disabilities. Only thing is pls dont lose hope hopeful is greatfull. Thank you.

By: Second outing, sort of: Does ‘disabled’ have to mean ‘invisible’? « La Vie Quotidienne

Wed, 26 Mar 2008 10:11:41 +0000

[...] wrote a post on disability last year as a guest writer on the Indian Economy blog. Those, who may not have read it the first [...]

By: Venkat

Venkat — Wed, 27 Feb 2008 00:53:45 +0000

Hi,

We have kicked off a community driven project to study and drive accessibility in buildings in S.Chennai. We feel that by making spaces accessible to disabled, we will see more of them in public. We are trying to tie-in offline ’social awareness’ campaigns with ‘online peer pressure’ through active wiki and blog postings.

We hope this will raise the awareness level, create more rapid transformations in variety of building types and public spaces. Once the disabled feel more comfortable moving about freely , this would lead to their next key requirement- employment.

The site address is : http://rampup.wetpaint.com
Would invite your comments & feedback. We are also seeking out for volunteers – both abled and disabled can apply. Please refer to the section ‘call for volunteers’ .

Thanks,

Venkat
INODA

By: Bobby Capps

Bobby Capps — Tue, 22 Jan 2008 02:34:23 +0000

I am disabled and I am in the US. I do not get any special privileges. There are parking spots for the disabled but I very seldom park in them. Anyways, I think it’s immaterial what percent of India’s people are disabled. They should recognize that disabled people should have the same rights as able bodied people.

By: Ashish

Ashish — Tue, 14 Aug 2007 05:57:42 +0000

Shafaly,
15-20% was from top of my head, as I heard my wife and her friends speak. the real number is possibly larger, and it is bound to be controversial given the Indian connotations (’Paagal’ or mad person). my wife now works for the state mental health facility, and i have, over the time, learnt about some of the issues. i went through depression before, and believe many stressed individuals go through depression episodes. perhaps it is necessary and healthy. however, many times people go “off the rocks”, become delusional and psychotic due to long periods of stress, and due to lack of support from family. we have to attribute cases of addiction to psychological factors as well, there is evidence of it now.

Kris,
our older system took care of disabilities, but did not treat disabled people with dignity. it was a ‘curse’ or a burden due the earlier births, and given that those people have to be supported, they became a source of stress for others. for a long time women bore that burden. times have since changed, although many people do take care of old and the disabled. i know of an aunt who took care of her disabled mother in law. the other side is that, daughter of the same mother-in-law would not want to take care of her. i know a few other cases, where families have deserted their parents, or neglected disabled people at home. most of these abandoned people are women, they suffer the most under stress also. my wife has more touching stories of women suffering over years of psychological abuse and neglect due to disability.

point is, we can no longer live under this romantic idea of our “close-knit family system” taking care of disabled people. we have adopted a modern living, so let us adopt a more direct approach to disability and the disabled.

cheers,
ashish

By: Kris

Kris — Tue, 07 Aug 2007 00:01:49 +0000

I chanced upon this partcular blog after a long discussion with some European colleagues. One of the most distinctive nature/culture of India is the “joint family based social system”. Actually many people fail to notice it and defintely it does not figure in the economical figures. We have a system which takes care of all needy and helpless by tightly integrating into the family structure. I fully appreciate the concern of many that you do not see handicapped at work place. But by my experience in our family circles we have more than 3 to 4 % of handicap personnel (was surprising for me too..but then later I figured out that this was because of close marriages), no one is unattended. The family has the responsibility of taking care of all these physically and mentally challenged persons. And they have been doing their duty meticulously…sometimes out of sense of duty..sometimes out of affection..and sometimes out of fear of gossip.Well that wasmy explanation to my European coleagues we have a welfare state where the welfare responsibility is with the family and not with the govt. Not surprisingly we have average growth rates closer to the hugely socialistic societies like the French and German. Of course currently this system is falling apart and also the economic growth is crossing the Hindu growth rate.
Maybe we don´t have to”ape” the western systems to establish ourselves as world leaders. Maybe we just need to fix that are not working..and not the things that are working.

By: Shefaly

Shefaly — Mon, 06 Aug 2007 05:20:02 +0000

Sachin: Thank you!

Win: Thank you for sharing your experience and for highlighting a point which I mention but which was admittedly not the core idea of the post. The preparation in early life preparation is of course the most essential of all, in order to enable inclusion in economically productive life later. However where do we break the lack of awareness-stigma-poor attitude vicious circle? I think considering the workplace plays an important role, we could start at the workplace where attitudes can be shaped in a ‘rules driven’ environment. Because I am sure there are more people like you in India – who may have physical disabilities but are cognitively gifted and add huge value. Why let it go to waste?

Thanks again.

By: Win Phatak

Win Phatak — Mon, 06 Aug 2007 03:19:51 +0000

As a person with Muscular Dystrophy (now physically challenged), I found the discussion interesting. One point I think is crucial, corporate sector cant employ people with disability because many times
they lack the necessary skill set.I was employed with a MNC and latter with a few local companies, I had the skills (forex and finanical analysis) which were in demand, so disability was not a issue.

Disabled persons do not get good basic education and skills training because of various issues like, rural/urban, gender, caste and class. These things are lost in the discussions.

Thanks for a healthy conversation.

By: Sachin Tiwari

Sachin Tiwari — Sun, 05 Aug 2007 19:11:55 +0000

very well said ..
Awareness shapes attitude.