UNCRPD in the XI Five-Year Plan

Lack of ‘Planning’

In July/August 2006, the preparations for the Eleventh Five Year Plan (2007-12) were going on full swing in the country. Steering Committees, Working Groups and Thematic Sub-Groups were constituted on various issues by the Ministries to develop the Plan.

NCPEDP and DRG were keeping track on the progress with respect to inclusion of disability issues in the Eleventh Plan. 

Following were some of the key observations made by DRG on the way the Committees responsible for Disability Section were performing, in their News Release dated 29th August 2006:

• The Steering Committee and the Working Group on ‘Empowering the Disabled’ did not have adequate representation from the disability sector, especially of people with disabilities.
• Steering Committee and Working Group had met only once so far and Minutes of this Meeting were not available. And, this Working Group is supposed to submit it’s Final Report by September 2006 (no exact date mentioned).
• Seven Sub-Groups were set up on 26th July 2006. DRG felt subject wise break-up of the Sub-Groups is quite warped and the representation of the disability sector is also quite poor. To top it, the Sub-Groups are supposed to submit their reports by 7th September and none of the seven have met even once thus far!

DRG met Dr. Balachandra Mungerkar, Member of Planning Commission and in-charge of Social Sector on 30th August 2006. Dr Mungerkar convened a meeting the very next day with G.B. Panda, Advisor, Social justice and Dr. G.N. Karna, Chairman of the Working Group on Empowering the Disabled.

DRG Launched a Campaign

Hundred of disabled people took part in the sit-in.

Considering all the facts and the criticality of issue, DRG decided the following:

1. We need to put an end to this sham immediately.
2. We must write a strong letter of protest to G.B. Panda, the so-called Advisor (Social Justice) in the Planning Commission.
3. We must write a strong letter of protest to (1) Sonia Gandhi; (2) Dr. Manmohan Singh; and (3) Dr. Montek Singh Ahluwalia to bring to their urgent attention this entire matter.
4. We must demand that Dr. G.N. Karna be immediately sacked as the Chairman of the Working Group on Empowering the Disabled.
5. We must demand that the entire Working Group and all the seven Sub – Groups be properly reviewed and reconstituted.
6. We must demand for an extension of the ‘September’ deadline.
7. And till these demands are not met, we must protest and protest and protest.

Report of the Working Group – Major Loopholes

Report of the Working Group on ‘Empowering the Disabled’ (chaired by Dr. G.N.Karna, dated December 2006, was sent to the disability sector for review in April 2007 (last week). DRG analysed the Report and found major loopholes in the strategy/approach it followed and in the content, as it had failed to prioritise many issues of key concern to the disability sector. One of the biggest flaws in the Report was that disability was not taken as a cross-cutting issue and other Ministries were not allocated any responsibility.

NCPEDP and DRG not only criticised the Report but also raised several procedural issues with the Planning Commission on 2nd May 2007 at the Steering Committee Meeting:

• Why was the Working Group Report sent so late to the Members of the Steering Committee (especially when it is dated December 2006!)?
• Why it does not contain certain suggestions that were given by us in the first Meeting of the Steering Committee?
• Why the Minutes of the 2nd Meeting of the Steering Committee are still not available?

DRG Protested outside the Planning Commission

A sit-in outside the planning commission.

The media was there. so was the police!

Disabled Rights Group (DRG) gathered outside the Office of the Planning Commission at Yojana Bhawan on Parliament Street on Tuesday, 19th September2006 and protested against the process of planning for the Eleventh Five Year Plan. DRG blocked the entrance of the Planning Commission at Yojana Bhawan on Parliament Street and then held a Dharna.

Parliament Street Police official’s became rude and took some of the protestors in the police van. The Dharna continued throughout the morning until the delegates from DRG were given an appointment for the next day with Shri Montek Singh Ahluwalia, the Deputy Chairman of the Planning Commission.

Javed abidi, convenor, drg at the sit-in.

DRG Drafts the Section “Empowering Persons with Disabilities’

DRG then decided that they cannot just leave it to the Planning Commission to redraft the Section. DRG Members redrafted the Section and called it ‘Empowering Persons with Disabilities’ and sent it to Planning Commission on 20th November 2007 with a request to replace the “extremely damaging draft” before getting the Eleventh Plan approved by the Union Cabinet.

DRG’s Draft gets included in the Eleventh Plan

The draft prepared by DRG ‘Empowering Persons with Disabilities’ was included verbatim in the Eleventh Plan in the Chapter 6 ‘Social Justice Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, Other Backward Classes, Minorities, and Other Vulnerable Groups’ (409 KB).

Some main highlights of the Eleventh Plan related to UNCRPD & Mainstreaming Disability

Eleventh Plan & UNCRPD

The Eleventh Plan has stated that: “India being a signatory of UNCRPD, it is now obligatory upon us to incorporate the essence of the convention in our planning, implementation, monitoring, and review processes [...] There is an urgent need to review all the four disability legislations and to amend them suitably to bring them in consonance with UNCRPD.”

Eleventh Plan & Mainstreaming Disability

In the Eleventh Plan, it has been very clearly stated that a firm four-pronged approach is necessary to: (i) delineate clear-cut responsibilities between the concerned ministries/departments; (ii) concerned ministries/departments to formulate detailed rules and guidelines within six months of approval of the Eleventh Plan; (iii) ensure that each concerned ministry/department shall reserve not less than 3% of their annual outlay for the benefit of disabled persons as enjoined in the Persons with Disabilities Act, 1995; (iv) set up monitoring mechanisms at various levels and develop a review system so that its progress can be monitored on a regular and continuing basis.

Eleventh Plan & Strengthening of Disability Division

The ‘Disability Division’ of the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment will be strengthened by converting it into a separate department, so that it can liaise effectively with all the other concerned Ministries/ Departments and fulfill its responsibilities towards disabled people.