Association of Visually Challenged students stage hunger strike

Visually challenged students demand job quotas, higher allowances, and pension increases in Krishnagiri protest for disability rights.

The Association of Visually Challenged College Students and Postgraduates staged a day-long hunger strike here over a raft of 9 demands on Thursday.

The protests were part of the State wide protests called by the association demanding a special quota in jobs and promotions, hike in unemployment allowance and disability allowance, among others.

The association demanded a 1 % reservation in teachers’ vacancies in government and government-aided schools and colleges, exemption in recruitment board tests for visually-challenged teachers who have cleared the TET. .

The protesters also called upon the State government to hike support for the differently-abled from the present ₹1,000 per month to ₹5,000 per month. Further, the association also demanded implementation of differently-abled pension from ₹1,500 to ₹5,000 per month, factoring the inflation.

The association also called for 4% quota in promotions giving primacy to the visually challenged and a G.O to that effect be issued. The protesters also called for a hike in conveyance allowance from ₹2,500 to ₹5,000. Other demands included reversal to the old pension scheme.