Center Told Court Ration Cards Are Required Under NFSA To Provide Food Grains (File)
New Delhi:
People with disabilities (PWDs) have been excluded from social protection programs “since time immemorial,” Delhi’s High Court said on Wednesday and asked the Center to consider providing them with a ration based on their disability certificates.
“The problem is that they have been excluded from (welfare) programs since time immemorial. If the Center is not aware of this, we will make it known,” said a bench of Chief Justice DN Patel. and Judge Prateek Jalan.
“The fact that people with disabilities are marginalized from all programs does not require debate,” he said.
The bench’s observations came during the DIP hearing of an NGO asking for instructions from the Center to ensure that states and Union territories provide benefits from social protection programs, like Pradhan Mantri Garib Anna Kalyan Yojana, to people with disabilities also during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The court, during the plea hearing via videoconference, suggested that the central government initially provide a one-month ration to people with disabilities on the basis of their disability certificates and in doing so also obtain all details that would be needed to issue them a ration card.
Subsequently, when people with disabilities come to collect rations, they will have a ration card as required by the National Food Security Act (NFSA) for the disbursement of food grains, the court said.
Permanent central government attorney Monika Arora told the court she would seek directions regarding the suggestion and the bench, subsequently, filed the case for the hearing on July 29.
The petition from the NGO, the National Federation of the Blind, represented by lead lawyer Santosh Kumar Rungta, argued that people with disabilities are overlooked when relief under various food security measures is implemented because most of ‘between them do not have ration cards.
The central government told the court that ration cards are needed under the NFSA to provide food grains over 80 million crore and that their compartmentalization into different categories, including people with disabilities, makes it difficult to identification of priority households.
The Center, in an affidavit, also said that everyone was given ration cards and that the onus was on people with disabilities to show that they were unable to get them.
The bench did not like Center’s position, saying “the tone and tenor of the affidavit was surprising.”
“It is not for people with disabilities not to be able to get ration cards. The onus is on the government to show that it has provided ration cards to everyone,” the court said.
“The problem is, you (center) don’t compartmentalize,” the bench said.
He added: “It is not harmonious if you implement the NFSA but not the Disability Rights Act (RPWD). The discord is due to the ignorance of the RPWD when implementing the NFSA. . “
The Center also asserted that it was the responsibility of States and TUs to identify priority households.
To this, the bench said states and UTs would need the Center’s “support / blessing” through an office memorandum or circular to include people with disabilities in the various social protection schemes, like the Pradhan Mantri Garib Anna Kalyan Yojana.
However, he asked the NGO to make the Delhi government a part in this matter.
The NGO argued that under the 1995 Disability Act, a reserve of 3% was provided for all disabled people participating in poverty reduction programs and that this percentage had been increased to 5%. under the RPWD Act of 2016.
Therefore, the government should ensure that at least 5 percent of food grain recipients under programs such as Antyodaya Anna Yojana and Pradhan Mantri Garib Anna Kalyan Yojana are people with disabilities, he said.
He also said that most people with disabilities are in institutions because they are neglected by their families and these institutions do not provide proof of address to their inmates and therefore cannot obtain ration cards.
The NGO said that under the NFSA, the Center should ensure that states and TUs identify people with disabilities who are eligible for food grains under the different programs and provide them with the same.
The petition asked the Center to look into the case of people with disabilities and visually impaired people, even without a ration card, on the basis of their disability certificate and / or their unique disability identity card (UDID). to obtain benefits under the National Food Safety Act. “and the Pradhan Mantri Garib Anna Kalyan Yojana.
In addition, he also sought to ensure that food grains were provided free of charge to poor people with disabilities, as was done for migrant workers and others during the current pandemic.
(With the exception of the title, this story was not edited by GalacticGaming staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
