DC instructs officials to ensure govt. benefits reach differently-abled persons

Deputy Commissioner ensures transparent implementation of welfare schemes for differently-abled individuals, addressing grievances and entitlements at meeting.

Deputy Commissioner G. Lakshmikanth Reddy instructed the officials to ensure that the welfare schemes meant for the differently-abled are implemented in a transparent manner and reach the needy.

He was attending a grievance redressal meeting at the Mysuru Zilla Panchayat here on Thursday. The grievances of the differently-abled should be heard with compassion and redressed on the spot, said Mr. Reddy.

The Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) officials were instructed to ensure that the seats reserved for differently-abled are not occupied by the general public and said that it was their rightful entitlement. Mr. Reddy said the divisional controller and other officials of the KSRTC will be issued instructions to comply with the requirements.

The officials were also instructed to prepare a list of individuals who were entitled to the disability pension but were not receiving it. Steps should be taken to disburse the pension on a priority basis, said the Deputy Commissioner.

The differently-abled persons who raised their grievances said that many of them did not have proper housing facilities and sought houses from the government.

They also emphasised that free bus passes should be issued to differently-abled individuals and said that the 5% reserved grant for the differently-abled was not being utilised fully by the Mysuru City Corporation. The authorities were informed that many differently-abled persons had not received pensions for more than a year and wanted the issue to be resolved.

Mysuru Zilla Panchayat Chief Executive Officer S. Yukesh Kumar, District Disability Welfare Officer Shankar Gowda Patil, officials from various departments, and differently-abled individuals attended the meeting.