Govt to spend Rs 598 m for differently-abled
Ridma Dissanayake
The government will spend Rs.598 million from next year's budget to
grant an allowance to the families of differently-abled persons. The
number of families who are entitled to the allowance will be increased
up to 16,500 from 2013, Social Services Department Director, Hemachandra
Hewage said.
He was addressing a press briefing at the Information Department
recently. Director Hewage said discussions were going on to increase the
allowance paid to the visually handicapped who undergo vocational
training up to Rs.1500 from next year.
There are 274,000 differently-abled persons in Sri Lanka and 72,000
among them are visually handicapped. About seven percent of Sri Lanka's
population are persons with visual disabilities. Sri Lanka Federation of
the Visually Handicapped (SLFVH) treasurer Nishantha Mendis said the
government had provided employment for visually handicapped persons.
Three percent of employment vacancies in the government sector had
been filled with candidates with visual disabilities, he said.
"Students with visual disabilities have no opportunity to gain a
successful primary education. They do not receive a complete text book
series in Brail language", Nishantha said.
The government has made arrangements to provide technical training
for persons with visual disabilities in Vocational Training Centres.
SLFVH secretary Manik Gunaratne said persons with disabilities only
need recognition of society, not charity. They should have the right to
take decisions.
All parts of society should know how to empower persons with
disabilities and how to have their contribution to the country's
development, she said.
The SLFVH chairman Alex Jayawardena and Sri Lanka Human Rights
Commission Director Samanthi Jayamanna Paranagama also participated. |