New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Friday sought the response of the Centre to a plea seeking effective implementation of the Right of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016 for ensuring the welfare of differently abled people. A bench of Chief Justice DY Chandrachud and Justice PS Narasimha issued notice to the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment on the PIL filed by Seema Girijalal seeking setting up of district-level committees on disability across the country.
We direct that notice shall be issued to the Union of India and the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment. The Ministry shall file a counter affidavit (reply) within a period of a month. The affidavit shall indicate the status of implementation of the Act state wise, the bench ordered.
It also directed the Centre to convene a meeting of all states concerned and state advisory boards with a view to eliciting the present status of compliance. The top court said it was not issuing notices to all the states at the moment and will take a call on this later. During the hearing, the bench noted the submissions that several provisions of the Act have not been implemented in various states.
Only 10 states had constituted separate departments for dealing with entitlements of persons dealing with disabilities; 12 states have independent commissioners, it noted, adding that states like Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra and Union Territories of Dadra and Nagar Haveli, Daman and Diu, and Ladakh are yet to notify rules under the statute," it said. Moreover, these states have not constituted the state advisory boards, it added.
One of the provisions of the statute provides for setting up a district-level committee on disability to monitor the implementation of welfare schemes, and several states have not implemented this, a lawyer said. The Right of Persons with Disabilities Act provides for access to inclusive education, self-employment and vocational training to those disabled. (PTI)
