‘We’re not invisible’: Specially-abled march to Janata Bhawan with 13-point demand

Guwahati, June 24: Members of the specially-abled community staged a peaceful protest in front of Janata Bhawan in Dispur on Tuesday, urging the state government to address a series of long-standing demands they allege have been ignored.

Carrying placards and walking with quiet determination, the protestors gathered outside the state secretariat, calling for meaningful intervention by the Social Justice and Empowerment (SJE) Department.

They also submitted a memorandum listing 13 key demands that they say are crucial for their dignity, development, and inclusion in society.

Among their primary demands were the separation of welfare schemes for persons with disabilities from the Orunodoi scheme, and the urgent filling of the remainder of 4,419 reserved vacancies for specially-abled persons across 23 state departments — posts pending since December 31, 2017.

They also called for the implementation of a 4% reservation for persons with disabilities in the Assam Legislative Assembly, in accordance with the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act.

Additionally, the memorandum demanded that a qualified person with disability be appointed as a member of the Assam Public Service Commission (APSC).

Other concerns raised included the condition of the state’s only school for visually impaired children, located in Guwahati, better support for teaching staff, financial assistance for economically weak specially-abled individuals, free healthcare, and free transportation facilities.

Senior Congress leader Mira Borthakur joined the protestors and extended her support, sharply criticising the government's priorities.

“The Chief Minister’s wife and wives of other senior ministers receive subsidies of crores, justified as a backup in case their husbands are not re-elected. Meanwhile, what has been done for the specially-abled community?” she asked.

Borthakur assured the protestors that their concerns would not go unheard. “We are taking steps to understand their demands in depth. The memorandum will be forwarded to the Leader of the Opposition, who will raise it in the Assembly. We will do whatever we can to ensure their voices are amplified,” she said.

The demonstration concluded without incident, but organisers noted that if their concerns remain unaddressed, they may intensify their movement in the coming days.