Getting disability certificates becomes easier in Delhi, state govt eases process

In a welcome move, the government of Delhi has issued an order that eases the process of getting a disability certificate. Now the process was based on the applicant’s district of residence which meant a lot of running around.

Eleven hospitals in Delhi now have the jurisdiction for issuing disability certificates as per the latest order of the government of Delhi. This announcement will come as a huge relief for the disabled community.

The 11 hospitals mentioned are Deen Dayal Upadhyay Hospital, Hindu Rao. Dr Baba Saheb Ambedkar Hopsital, Guru Tech Bahadur Hospital, Govind Ballabh Pant Hospital, Institute of Human Behaviour and Allied Sciences, Safdarjung Hospital, Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital, Lady Hardinge Hospital, Lok Nayak Hospital and the All India Institute of Medical Sciences.

As per the order all these hospitals will have the jurisdiction to issue disability certificates under the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act. Earlier this was based on where the applicant lived.

Welcoming the move, disability rights advocate Dr Satendra Singh said, “Lots of people with disabilities had this complaint that they have to run from pillar to post because of jurisdiction boundaries. This was particularly for newer disabilities like dyslexia & deafblindness as not all hospitals are equipped with necessary specialists. This move to decentralise will ease the burden”.

This new order will take away the need to travel long distances to get disability certificates as well, says Muralidharan Vishwanath, General Secretary, National Platform for the Rights of the Disabled (NPRD).

“There used to be a lot of issues about certification with the disabled being shunted from one hospital to another. At times due to territorial issues and at times due to issue of a particular hospital not being designated to certify for a specific disability. This circular gets rid of that and puts a new welcome regime in place. Many will feel relieved that they would not have to travel long distances to reach a specific hospital. But still would all of these hospitals have all the facilities available to examine all the specified disabilities?”.