Nominations for 2019 NCPEDP-Mphasis Universal Design Awards are open

It’s that time of the year when all the eyes are on the many achievements in the disability sector in India. We are talking about the NCPEDP-Mphasis Universal Design Awards for 2019.

Nominations for the NCPEDP-Mphasis Universal Design Awards are now open. This is a prestigious award given every year to people who are making an outstanding effort to empower and enable India’s disabled population.

In 2010, the National Centre for Promotion of Employment for Disabled People (NCPEDP) joined hands with leading IT services company Mphasis to set up the Universal Design Awards, the aim being to encourage stakeholders and people with disabilities to think and work around developing accessibility solutions in the space of education, employment, infrastructure, to name a few.

Mumbai-based lawyer Amar Jain, winner of the Accessibility and Universal Design in 2018, says the awards have brought greater visibility to the needs and rights of the disabled community.

The man behind NCPEDP, Javed Abidi, carried an immense reputation in the disability sector. He and a handful of others are credited with raising the level of the disability movement in India so our voices could be heard. Both NCPEDP and Mphasis are very well-known organizations and getting an award from them is an honor. The jury panel that selects the awardees for the awards does not take its work lightly and consists of eminent personalities making the awards even more prestigious. – Amar Jain, Lawyer

The awards are given every year on 14 August, the eve of Independence Day to individuals and organizations in fields of environment, transport, Information and Communication Technology, services, aids and appliances, public policy and advocacy.

The designs are considered accessible if they meet the below principals.

1. Equitable use

2. Flexibility

3. Simple and intuitive

4. Perceptible information

5. Tolerance for error

6. Low physical effort

7. Size and space for approach and use

   There are three categories recognising accessible designs and winners are selected by a jury panel.

Category A: Persons with Disabilities

The awards are for individuals with disabilities who have made contribution to ‘Accessibility and Universal Design’. Three people are selected for this honor every year.

Category B: Working Professionals

This recognises people working in the field of accessibility. Three people are selected and they can be a part of an educational institute, NGO, corporate or government body. They could be working independently as well.

Category C: Companies/Organisations

Companies and organizations that are working on the cause of ‘Accessibility and Universal Design’ are recognized for their efforts in this category. These could be firms in private sector, public sector, joint sector, SME or proprietorship/partnership firms. Four companies or organisations from across the country are given this award annually.

Apart from these, there’s one more award that was introduced last year. This is in honor of the late Javed Abidi, the well-known disability rights leader and former director of the NCPEDP. This is the strong>NCPEDP — Mphasis Javed Abidi Public Policy Awards.

This award will be given to one organization and one individual working to ensure that people with disabilities get their rights and are given equal opportunities.

The 2018 NCPEDP — Mphasis Javed Abidi Public Policy Awards were given to:
Amar Jain, Vishal Kumar Jain of TATA Motors, Diversity and Equal Opportunity Centre-DEOC, National Association of the Deaf

15 June is the last date for submitting the nominations for the awards.

NOMINATION FORM: To nominate yourself or someone else for the awards click the link: https://ncpedp.org/The_NCPEDP-Mphasis_Universal_Design_Awards#nomination

EMAIL TO: secretariat.ncpedp@gmail.com or call 011-26221275/76/77

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