Nagaland yet to implement three sections of RPwD Act

December 15, 2024 3 Views No Comment

Morung Express News
Dimapur | December 15

Nagaland has yet to fully comply with certain provisions of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016 (RPwD Act), according to the status of implementation presented in the Supreme Court on December 3.

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The state government is still to enforce Sections 21, 26, and 37 of the Act.

Section 21 pertains to the Equal Opportunity Policy, while Sections 26 and 37 deal with insurance schemes and special development programmes for persons with disabilities (PwDs), respectively (See box for details)

The status was given when the Supreme Court bench, comprising Justice Hrishikesh Roy and Justice SVN Bhatti, resumed the hearing of a petition regarding the enforcement of the RPwD Act on December 3.

During the hearing, the Court noted that several orders have been passed in the case, particularly one on March 6, 2020, and recorded the status of responses from various states and Union Territories (UTs) regarding compliance with the provisions of the Persons with Disabilities (Equal Opportunities, Protection of Rights and Full Participation) Act, 1995, which has now been replaced by the RPwD Act.

Noting that several states and UTs have fully complied or submitted their compliance affidavits, the Court then directed that all states and UTs provide these affidavits to the counsel of the petitioner (s) within three weeks. The counsel was further directed compile a chart to present to the Court.

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Accordingly, as per the chart presented before the Court on December 3, only Andaman & Nicobar Islands, Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Karnataka, Lakshadweep, Odisha, Puducherry, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, and Uttarakhand have fully complied with the provisions of the RPwD Act. The chart also highlights deficiencies in compliance on a section-wise basis.

In response to the sumission, the representatives of the non-compliant states and UTs assured that necessary measures would be taken to ensure full compliance with the Act.

Thus, the Court granted these states and UTs a deadline of February 17, 2025, to finalise their compliance.

To ensure the process is effectively monitored, the Court ordered that the Chief Secretary of each state and UT designate a senior officer to oversee the implementation of the RPwD Act within their jurisdiction, the December 3 order added.

The Supreme Court has directed that a copy of the order be forwarded to all Chief Secretaries, and the matter has been listed for further hearing on February 17, 2025.