Campaign ROSHAN- Training PwD to lead a dignified life

Summary

“…she submitted her resume…and was called for an interview. She was in high spirits to attend the interview.

However, the officer, seeing her as a person with a disability, cancelled the interview although her certificates were in order. She was dismayed and angry….. the officer replied they could do nothing about it.”

Experience of a PwD job applicant in Sudergarh, Odisha

Odisha is a state full of cultural richness and sanctity with a population primarily dependent on agriculture. The agrarian economy in India is often vulnerable to climate and fewer returns therefore, one in every three persons in Odisha stands poor. Two districts Kalahandi and Balangir have been designated as one of the most backward regions in the state. Lack of training and skilling opportunities prevent people from getting better job avenues. The situation becomes more challenging for the disabled population. Odisha has around 12.44-lakh people living with a disability (PwD). For a PwD, access to education and training becomes far more difficult due to locomotor/sensory/intellectual barriers. The chances of finding employment are again meagre. Although it is the mandate for government organisations to have PwD at 3% of the total workforce, Govt/Non-Govt sectors employ as less as 0.05% PwD out of the total working population. Even in the private sector, employers usually turn down the few disabled job seekers due to inaccessibility at workplaces and aversion to providing an extra set of adjustments for the disabled workforce

What if people with disabilities can be empowered to run their own businesses, and offer services to consumers through training and collaboration? INDIAdonates partner AnchalikSamruddhi Sadhana Anusthan (ASSA) is running a project in two districts of Odisha, Balangir and Kalahandi where it is training PwD in setting up assembling units for PV Solar  LED lights. These training workshops are to skill PwD on installing solar LED lights in rural households which face a perpetual problem of lack of electricity and have to resort to cautious materials like kerosene for lighting. A phenomenal drop in the capital cost of solar power and huge backing from government policies also makes solar LED a captivating market service. 

These trained PwD beneficiaries can act as primary contractors or partners in providing and assembling solar-led lights that have a huge potential in the rural areas of Kalahandi and Balangir in Odisha. This opportunity can help PwD escape economic insecurity and dependency on others for essential services resulting in good health and economic outcomes.

 

The project will create a win-win situation for the specially-abled and the region. With this project, those once left to succumb to fate will get employment opportunities while thousands living with the uncertainty of electricity would be benefitted.

Your contribution can help light up the lives of these specially-abled warriors. Please donate