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CBR Forum E-News Bulletin
A Compilation of News, Information and Updates in promoting the rights of persons with disabilities
Jul 2010
First issue: Oct 2007, Current Issue No. #34
Disclaimer This e-news is a collation of articles/ news from national and international sources. The contents of the same do not necessarily represent the views of CBR Forum.
Networking, Advocacy and Lobbying – in promoting the rights of persons with disabilities and enhance the potential to exercise these rights.
Compiled by:
C. Mahesh, Advocacy Coordinator
A: INDIA
Visually impaired wins right: IAS job
SAMANWAYA RAUTRAY
New Delhi, July 7: A visually impaired man who cleared the IAS exam in 2006 but was denied a post on the ground that no such position had been identified for reservation, will be appointed within eight weeks.
Visually impaired Ravi will join the public services
New Delhi: The Supreme Court has ordered the Union government to find Ravi Prakash Gupta, who is visually impaired, a job within eight weeks in the Civil Services.
Read more at: http://www.ndtv.com/article/india/visually-impaired-ravi-will-join-the-public-services-36174?cp
Have sympathetic approach towards disabled: HC to UPSC
NEW DELHI: The Delhi high court has asked the UPSC to adopt a sympathetic approach towards disabled persons and told it not to reject the application of a civil service aspirant who could not fill up the form properly because of blindness.
HC seeks details of disabled candidates joining IIMs
MUMBAI: The Bombay high court on Monday sought details of the seats reserved for disabled candidates in Indian Institutes of Management across India and the number of such candidates admitted during the current academic year.
71 seats reserved at IIMs for disabled candidates: HC told
A total of 71 seats were reserved for the disabled candidates in seven Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs), the Bombay High Court was told on Tuesday.
‘New disability law should include social security scheme’
After months of flip-flop, the ministry of social justice and empowerment (MSJE) has finally acceded to the demands of the disability movement in India to replace the current Persons with Disability Act (Equal Opportunity, Full Participation, Protection of Rights) with a “21st century legislation to reflect the 21st century challenges”. It has set up a panel consisting of NGO representatives and some important government departments to draft the new law.
http://www.deccanherald.com/content/81360/disability-law-should-include-social.html
HC stays eviction of five blind students from govt hostel
NEW DELHI: The Delhi high court has come to the rescue of five visually-impaired students who were asked to vacate a government-run hostel in the capital.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/6128931.cms
How families and coteries are ruining disabled sports in India
The disability sports sector in India seems to be in gross disarray with the administration of the sector in the stranglehold of a coterie of people who seem to have no interest in either the disabled or in sports. National disabled sporting federations seem to be run like mom-and-pop outfits with hardly any national character.
NGOs want courts to respond to firms that wink at responsibility
CHENNAI: The Madras high court recently ruled that the government must reserve 3% of all jobs in government institutions for the disabled, but day-to-day issues like accessibility to public places, getting around in a public building, lack of ramps, restrooms and elevators continue to trouble the physically handicapped.
'Universal Design' AccessAbility
Universal Design a concept that is so new and still emerging in India is the key to inclusion of people with disabilities. In the pursuit to increase awareness about 'Universal Design' AccessAbility was a part of a awareness programme for teachers of Architecture held at the National Institute for Advance Studies in Architecture, Pune in collaboration with Ekansh and others.Please find below news links of the same for further information.
Disabled not at par with SC/ST in DU's MBBS course: Delhi HC
NEW DELHI: The Delhi High Court Tuesday dismissed a petition filed by a physically handicapped candidate seeking relaxation in the eligibility criteria for admission to Delhi University's medical course.
Supreme Court denies disability pension to army Major
New Delhi: The Supreme Court (SC) has upheld the constitutional validity of a regulation in military service rules that ensures disability pension only to those personnel of fighting forces who are invalided due to physical ailments caused by inhospitable service conditions.
http://www.dnaindia.com/india/report_supreme-court-denies-disability-pension-to-army-major_1407234
Disabled continue protest for jobs
CHENNAI: Technically qualified disabled people on Monday staged a protest demanding jobs in front of the office of Commissioner of the disabled.
http://expressbuzz.com/cities/chennai/disabled-continue-protest-for-jobs/189248.html
Is there barrier-free access for persons with disabilities to access this temple or to get ISO Certification???
Kapaleeswarar temple gets ISO certificate
Chennai: The Kapaleeswarar temple in Mylapore was on Monday awarded ISO 9001:2008 certification.
Bhopal tragedy: Disabled stage demonstration in Kolkata
About 10,000 physically challenged people on Monday staged a demonstration near the American Consulate here to express solidarity with those who were rendered disabled after the Bhopal gas leak. http://www.hindustantimes.com/Bhopal-tragedy-Disabled-stage-demonstration-in-Kolkata/Article1-571371.aspx
Govt proposes urban employment scheme similar to NREGA
Government has proposed to launch an urban employment guarantee scheme on the lines of NREGA and give statutory sanctions to minimum wages.
http://www.deccanherald.com/content/79178/govt-proposes-urban-employment-scheme.html
Calcutta, July 18: Just as India was making progress in checking polio, Bengal threatens to spoil the effort because of what state officials themselves admit to be “complacency”.
Embossed books for visually challenged children
Despite the strong emphasis on inclusive education, there are virtually no ‘pre-literacy’ story books available for visually challenged/impaired children in the Indian market. Practically, this would include all textbooks.
http://www.deccanherald.com/content/83876/embossed-books-visually-challenged-children.html
Novel devices empower disabled
For Avniash Sonnad (23) joining Christ College to study Bachelors in Computer Application (BCA) is a big achievement because he gets to study in a mainstream classroom despite the fact that he suffers from cerebral palsy-dyskinetic.
http://www.deccanherald.com/content/83877/novel-devices-empower-disabled.html
RTE to be tweaked to help pvt schools
NEW DELHI: Elite schools and those who have their wards studying there can rest assured. The Right to Education Act will not dilute their elite character. The government is considering a crucial amendment in the Act whereby the provision guaranteeing admission to all the applicants will be done away with.
Disabled youth mistaken for thief, brutally killed in Mumbai
Mumbai: In a shocking case of barbaric conduct, a group of seven youths, including two minors, tortured a 25-year-old physically challenged youth for over an hour-and-a-half in Kamraj Nagar in Ghatkopar (east), suspecting him to be a thief. After finding him dead, the group threw the body in a nullah to destroy evidence.
Now, the disabled can join BPO sector
BANGALORE: This BPO training centre in Peenya Industrial Area is not the normal glitzy establishment in any tech park, which generally brims with young graduates getting accent training. It's different. This call centre training unit is for disabled people.
Tech support for the disabled
BANGALORE: The Spastic Society of Karnataka's Centre for Assistive Technology on Wednesday discussed how to make technology-based devices more easily accessible and affordable in India.
MphasisF1 lends an ear to the impaired
Karan’s life has undergone a sea change in the last couple of years. Coming from a poor family in Uttar Pradesh, he had shifted to Delhi in search of better opportunities in 2000.
Letting actions speak
Yum! Restaurants as part of its CSR initiative has six KFC stores across the country that hire people with hearing -and-speech impairment.
http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/letting-actions-speak/400018/
Of sound mind, but forced to live in mental hospital
Over 100 people have been leading lives as condemned prisoners since relatives are not willing to accept them.
http://www.deccanherald.com/content/79064/of-sound-mind-forced-live.html
His journey from pauper to burger king
LUDHIANA: Overcoming obstacles has been a part of Ram's life ever since he realized that polio had marred his ability to walk freely. But, the young boy knew that dreams never need any crutches as long as one's will power remains strong.
Radicals lose Round One on food bill
RADHIKA RAMASESHAN
The food rights campaigners in the council wanted a targeted public distribution system (PDS) to cover all except the affluent, providing not just cheap cereals but also other requirements of nursing mothers, children, the aged and the physically challenged
NAPAD organizes parents awareness workshop
Nagaland Parents Association for the disabled (NAPAD), Kohima unit organized a parents awareness workshop at the deputy commissioner’s conference hall at Wokha on Friday.
http://www.nagalandpost.com/ShowStory.aspx?npoststoryiden=UzEwMjc5OTM%3D-1nJlZP7cD8E%3D
Rocket man Kalam cherishes his role in making disabled children walk
CHENNAI: He and his team used rocket science for designing an artificial limb weighing just 400 grams. And he cherishes it more than launching rockets. Former President APJ Abdul Kalam said it was "bliss" to see children smile after wearing the light-weight prosthesis on their legs designed by him and his team.
India launches new programme to fight cancer, diabetes, stroke
India Thursday launched a new programme to detect, prevent and control the spread of cancer, diabetes, heart ailments and strokes with an outlay of Rs.1,230.90 crore ($275 million) for the next two years.
The challenge of caring for a disabled child
It’s one of the hardest jobs in the world. For those looking after a disabled child, care is a gruelling 24/7 reality. Yet they don’t want sainthood, just a secure future for their child.
Visually impaired women craft traditional wristbands for 'Rakshabandhan'
The visually impaired women here are crafting 'Rakhi', or traditional wristbands, for the upcoming Hindu sibling festival of 'Rakshabandhan' under the banner of the National Association for the Blind (NAB).
Workshop on RTI act for visually impaired
Mysore, Mar. 2 (DM)- A one-day workshop on 'Right To Information Act for the visually handicapped' was recently organised at JSS Polytechnic for the Handicapped Persons in city.
http://www.inmysore.com/newsflash/workshop-on-rti-act-for-visually-impaired
FIAPF supports copyright access to visually impaired
NEW DELHI: Film Federation of India Secretary General Supran Sen recently said that there was need to support the important role of securing access by the visually impaired and other differently enabled persons to copyright work through practically achievable methods.
http://www.indiantelevision.com/aac/y2k10/aac373.php
'Visually impaired teachersas capable as sighted ones'
PUNE: An audio-visual presentation on Chhatrapati Shivaji by a visually impaired teacher and his team had students from two schools hooked onto the unique session at the Modern English Medium School on Monday afternoon.
B: INTERNATIONAL NEWS
Institutions for disabled should be closed down, says report
ALL INSTITUTIONS for people with intellectual disabilities should be closed down within the next seven years because they are in breach of residents’ basic rights.
Paralympian Has Impaired Sight but Strong Focus on Success
CARY, N.C. (AP) — Tucker Dupree swims straight into darkness every time he leaps into the pool. And yet, despite the disease that has robbed him of much of his sight, he could not feel any more at home than he does when he is in the water training to be a Paralympic champion.
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/07/25/sports/25swim.html
Amputee loses benefit after walking
A soldier who lost a leg in Afghanistan had his disability benefit taken away despite only being able to walk a few hundred metres with the help of a prosthetic limb, it has been reported.
http://www.google.com/hostednews/ukpress/article/ALeqM5gT-7LKkCg_wjPjjimA3lArRFcXvQ
Author explores pregnancy, disability
Heather Kuttai had always loved music, although as a wheelchair user, she never expected to be able to dance with her son. But when Kuttai’s son Patrick was just a toddler, she got her wish.
http://thechronicleherald.ca/Books/1190392.html
Britain's first MP with Cerebral Palsy encourages persons with disability to enter politics
June 28: The first elected representative to the British Parliament with
Cerebral Palsy, possibly the first in the world with that disability, has urged more persons with disability to enter politics.
http://www.mail-archive.com/accessindia@accessindia.org.in/msg38389.html
Man groped mentally disabled women
Caregiver gets six months house arrest, name goes into national registry
http://www.thespec.com/News/Local/article/807249
AP Exclusive: Priests who abuse impaired targeted
VATICAN CITY — The Vatican is cracking down on priests who sexually abuse mentally impaired adults, sanctioning them with the same set of punishments meted out for clerics who rape and molest children, The Associated Press has learned.
Vatican mulls how to protect impaired adults
VATICAN CITY — As the Vatican grapples with how to sanction priests who rape children, it has also mulled how to punish priests who sexually abuse mentally impaired adults, The Associated Press has learned.
Families with disabled children 'struggle to pay bills'
Families with disabled children are struggling to pay household bills as the downturn hits their already stretched finances, a survey suggests.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/8805957.stm
Blind person to drive at Daytona
A blind person will soon be driving at Daytona. No, I didn't begin my Independence Day celebrations a week ago. Please, bear with me a little. We'll get to Daytona shortly.
http://news.cnet.com/8301-17852_3-20009647-71.html
World's first talking TV now a reality
TVs that can talk to their owners are now a reality thanks to British high-tech company, Ocean Blue Software. Expected in UK stores by the end of the summer, the company's low cost text-to-speech technology, dubbed "Talk@TV", is being built into set top boxes from Korean company, Arion Technology, which will be branded and distributed by major retailers in the UK from August.
http://www.ethiopianreview.com/news/138337
Driving Home the Point on Accessibility
The U.S. Departments of Education and Justice on Tuesday released an open letter to colleges expressing concern that some institutions might be “using electronic book readers that are not accessible to students who are blind or have low vision” and warning them that the government will crack down on any institutions that are “requiring” disabled students to use emerging technology that does not comply with federal accessibility laws.
http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2010/06/30/kindle
Gaza young man uses his voice to defy physical disabilities
Leaning on crutches, the physically disabled Osama Abu Safar, resident of Gaza City, went everyday to work at Fursan al-Iradah (Knights of Will) radio station.
TV comic Norman Pace reveals fears for future of disabled daughter
FUNNYMAN Norman Pace yesterday told of his fears for his disabled daughter.
Disabled in UAE get 50 percent discount in taxis
DHABI: Disabled and elderly people in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) will now get an up to 50 percent discount on taxi fares
C: RESOURCES – Newsletter, Publication,Journal, Guideline,Website
Monitoring the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities
Please find below links to download Monitoring the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Guidance for human rights monitors, UN OHCHR "Professional training series".
Make development inclusive
An IDDC project financed by the European Commission
make-development-inclusive.org
Global Network for Entrepreneurs with Disabilities
The Global Network for Entrepreneurs with Disabilities is a newly formed organization which recognizes that it is within our capabilities to initiate a call to action-to challenge and change international policy, practice, and participation of disabled people in developing and building their own successful businesses.
http://entrepreneurswithdisabilities.org/
APCD Newsletter (latest)
The PDF version of APCD newsletter
http://apcdfoundation.org/?q=system/files/Newsletter_Volume_32.pdf
D: ANNOUNCEMENTS
The third session of the Conference of States Parties (COSP3)
The third session of the Conference of States Parties (COSP3) to the
Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) will be held from 1-3 September 2010. Prior to the Conference, a Civil Society Forum will be held on 31 August 2010 from 3 to 6 p.m. The COSP3 information note currently available on the United Nations Enable website (http://www.un.org/disabilities/default.asp?id=1532) provides the official documentation of the meeting, including information on the provisional agenda and the elections of the members Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.
1st Regional Senior Disability Equality Training (DET) Trainers’ Training - 1 – 12 November 2010, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Deadline for application: 25 August 2010
Course Fee: Free of Charge
For application forms contact:
Ms. Terumi Shikata (shikata.terumi@gmail.com)
Tel: +60-3-2616 6025
Fax: +60-3-2691 7473
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Disclaimer: This e-news is a collation of articles/ news from national and international sources. The contents of the same do not necessarily represent the views of CBR Forum.