Puducherry : A consultative workshop on “employability of people with disabilities” held here on Monday brought to fore the difficulties faced by differently-abled persons in finding a suitable job.
Labour Commissioner E. Vallavan underscored the deep dissatisfaction among the people with disability about the skill development programmes. “When I spoke to a few representatives of people with special needs, they told me that each person in their organization has at least five certificates. They confided that they attend the training programmes for the stipend money alone since it does not guarantee employment,” he said.
He added, “I understood that many training programmes have been organized by government departments and crores of rupees have been spent on it. The problem lies in the approach on addressing the issues. In a government set-up, they seek details about the physical and financial achievement of the skill development programmes instead of looking into how many people gained sustainable employment.”
He said that the failure was due to the difficulty in identifying the potential of the place, the job requirement and the kind of training needed. “Normally, we first conduct training programmes and give certificates,” he said.
“Puducherry is approaching the issue in a different way. A new skill development programme has been initiated where as many as 125 people are being given training for providing suitable employment. We are planning to conduct this programme throughout the year,” he added.
He said that the new skill development programme framework has been formulated by a council of experts drawn from 38 sectors.
“There will be a certified trainer and each participant will be individually rated based on their performance. This certificate will help them obtain jobs oversees as well,” he added.
Briefing about the workshop, Chitra Shah, Director, Satya Special School, said job opportunities for people with disabilities has come down. “At least 60 per cent of people with disabilities are employed in Norway and the United States of America. Their government has the requisite infrastructure, network, backup and social security system in place,” she said.
Ms. Shah added that the problem in Puducherry was in the early stage of identification of disability.
“Except in JIPMER, no medical institution has early identification centre in Puducherry. Though educational facilities at the school level are inclusive to an extent and there is also enrollment of people with disability in colleges, infrastructure for person with special needs is missing. There are not enough Braille texts available at the institutions. In addition to this, accessibility remains a huge issue for the visually and physically challenged,” she said.
The meeting was organized by Satya Special School in association with Leonard Cheshire Project, Nagapattinam.
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