Hyderabad, July 26 (RAHNUMA): Minister for Scheduled Castes Development, Tribal Welfare, Welfare of Persons with Disabilities, Senior Citizens and Transgender Persons Adluri Lakshman Kumar said the State government is committed to ensuring representation for Persons with Disabilities (PwDs) in local bodies by facilitating their nomination as co-opted members.
The Minister was the chief guest at the NeoFly Bolt Accessibility Devices Distribution Programme held at Jubilee Hills on Sunday. On the occasion, 90 beneficiaries with spinal cord injuries and other severe locomotor disabilities were provided with state-of-the-art NeoFly Bolt mobility devices, designed using advanced assistive technology.
The distribution was undertaken under the Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiative of Hyundai Mobis, which extended financial support of approximately ₹1.26 crore for the programme. Each NeoFly Bolt device, valued at around ₹1.40 lakh, has been specifically designed to significantly enhance mobility and independence for persons with severe disabilities.
Addressing the gathering, the Minister said the State government had responded favourably to a representation submitted by the Committee for Representation of Persons with Disabilities in Local Bodies. Referring to the recent Cabinet decision to provide representation to transgender persons in local bodies through co-option, he stated that he had similarly proposed extending the same opportunity to persons with disabilities.
“I am pleased to state that Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy has responded positively to this proposal. The government is actively considering measures to ensure representation for persons with disabilities in local self-government institutions,” the Minister said.
He further observed that, on the lines of the existing provision for minorities, the government intends to create an appropriate mechanism to facilitate the nomination of persons with disabilities as co-opted members in local bodies.
