As yet another World Disabled Day would arrive on every December, the disabled persons would inevitably recollect the promises and assurances given to them during the last World Disabled Day around a year back and realize that nothing much has changed in their life content. While promises and celebrations take place year after year like a ritual, several of the disabled persons continue to live on in conditions of poverty and uncertainty, not knowing as to what the future would hold for them.

The last National Census has clearly revealed that as much as 2% of the national population consist of disabled persons which could be more than two crores and which is more than the total population of several countries in the world. In Tamil Nadu alone, there are reported to be around 17 lakhs of disabled persons . More than 90% of them, consisting of orthopaedically disabled, visually/ hearing/speech impaired and mentally ill persons , belong to lower income group and large percentage of them live in rural areas and small towns , often unnoticed by the busy brethren around.

With physical immobility on the one hand and lack of resources and adequate income on the other hand, most of the disabled persons do not have the access to quality educational institutions or the facilities to acquire the requisite skill to employ themselves. While the government has some schemes to help them, the fact is that such schemes are far too inadequate considering the population of the disabled persons and the intensity of their problems. The disability not only causes physical discomfort but also mental trauma and frustration as they cannot be part of the mainstream of life, which make their life doubly difficult.

The disabled persons are conscious that they can come out of their plight only if they would improve their economic conditions and lead an independent life, which would be possible only in the event of securing employment giving them a regular income.

The fact is that given their difficult conditions, most of the disabled persons are unemployable in the case of many positions and they need to be given special concessions not only in being provided with employment but also in day today work while being employed. This, obviously means that the employers have to put up with some level of inadequacies in the case of employing the disabled persons.


The reservations provided by the government in jobs is far too inadequate and most of the disabled persons are not benefited by such reservation policies. In the present scenario, where the government itself is reducing the job positions in its departments and recruitment has become scarce , many disabled persons have to wait for several years to get the government jobs and a large number of them do not get the government jobs at all in their life time.

The fact is that the industrial and commercial establishments in private sector which are much larger employers than the governments, rarely provide jobs to the disabled persons. For such private sector employers, the only criteria for providing employment is efficiency and speed in output and many disabled persons cannot compete with normal persons in such aspects. As there is large level of unemployment even amongst the normal persons in the country, many disabled persons find that they do not have a chance in this rat race for jobs in the private sector.

In such difficult and adverse conditions, the only option open for large percentage of disabled persons is to self employ themselves, for which also they need some sort of support from the government and the society.

Many corporate bodies and individuals living in affluent and comfortable circumstances do come forward to help the disabled persons to some extent but only by way of charity and not by providing them support in their self employment activity.

Unless a well defined and sustainable method of providing self employment opportunities to the disabled persons would be evolved, there is no immediate feasibility of disabled persons coming out of their present plight. The government has a big responsibility in this matter, as it has to work out and implement appropriate policies and programmes to enable the disabled persons self employ themselves. A friendly marketing mechanism for the products and services of the disabled persons have to be facilitated by the government by its own acts and also persuading the private sector organizations and individuals to buy the products and services of the disabled persons, even offering special incentives if need be.

While feelings of compassion amongst the citizens towards the disabled persons is desirable, it will not be adequate if such compassion would only lead to occasional charities. But , on the other hand, it should result in a sustained campaign of supporting the disabled persons to fruitfully employ themselves .