Financial Inclusion, Growth & Development – How do I fit in? asks persons with disabilities.
Status Unknown – Promises 2014-15
No specific allocation or information is available on the following promises made by the Union Government in the financial year 2014-15:
- National Institute for Inclusive Universal Design
- National Centre for Disability Sports
- 15 New Braille Press and modernize existing ones
- Currency Notes in Braille
Promises 2015-16
- Access for persons with disabilities in select heritage sites in Goa, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Rajasthan, Gujarat, Varanasi, Jammu & Kashmir, Punjab and Hyderabad / Telungana.
- Increase in tax exemption to the tune of Rs.25,000 under sections 80DD and 80U of the Income Tax Act for families having persons with disabilities and persons with disabilities respectively.
- Assistive devices for Senior Citizens living below poverty line.
Key Observations:
- 64% of the total working age population (82% of population of persons with disabilities are not students and is considered as working age) are non-workers and marginal workers and thus do not benefit from the promise of increased tax exemption or any Government programme.
- There has been a marginal increase of Rs.4 crore in the estimated overall budget of the Department of Disability Affairs. This increase is on the scheme for assistive devices. The habilitation and rehabilitation programmes the key role of the department are slashed example: DDRS has been slashed by 50%, The department functions with 69% efficiency.
- No allocation to the National Mental Health programme, which is the only programme that has components for community mental health,
- The allocation to programmes related to persons with disabilities across Ministries has maintained status quo.
- The allocation to the programme “Sports for the Disabled” by the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports has been reduced.
Increase in tax exemption to families and persons with disabilities under section 80DD and section 80 U of the Income Tax Act, though a welcome move on the part of the Union Government, it is important to get in to details to understand “Who benefits out of the one of the couple of promises made by the Union Government?”, “Does it really contribute towards participation of persons with disabilities in the growth and development agenda of the nation?”.
It is to be noted that in order to avail this exemption, one should be earning more than 2.5 lakhs per year. In the absence of statistics on number of persons with disabilities earning more than 2.5 lakhs in a year, the census 2011 document is used for understanding the status of persons with disabilities.
As per census 20111, 69% of the total population of persons with disabilities lives in rural areas. Off the 69%, 47% of the population is in the working age and 45% are non-workers. In the urban areas the non-worker population amounts to 47% of the total population in working age. Therefore the total non-worker population as per census 2011 amounts to 46% of the total population.
The worker population is categorized into main workers and marginal workers. Main workers are those who work for more than 6 months in a year and this group amounts to 25% of the total population, ones likely to benefit from the tax exemption. Marginal workers are those who work for less than 6 months in a year and this group amounts to 9% of total population. Main workers include age group from 15 to 60+.
Further analysis revealed that 92% of the non-worker population does not receive the pension or any other benefits of the Government. It is needless to mention that the 9% marginal workers are not eligible for the pension, Rs.300/month from the Government.
Therefore, 64% of the working age population is not benefited by any of the promises of the Union Government. It is observed that even among the population of workers with disabilities, 58% work as cultivation labourers, agriculture labourers and in house hold industries, who are unlikely to earn more Rs.2.5 lakhs per year and the remaining 42% are carrying out other jobs, which amounts to 18% of the total working age population. Thus it safe to concluded that only few numbers of persons with disabilities are benefited every year out of this exemption.
The tax foregone estimated to Rs.157.4 crore during the financial year 2014-15 has benefited only few out of this 18%.
It is important to highlight here that those who receive pension from the Union Government, how much ever topped by the State, carries the burden of the guideline “cannot gainfully engage in any forms of employment”. This shows that the Government addresses population in the two extremes, though not adequately, has nothing to compensate those who may be “gainfully employed, but not enough to compensate the disability additional cost thus be included in the community and enjoy adequate standard of living.
Understanding the Trend in Union spending / allocation towards persons with disabilities
The allocation to the Department of Disability Affairs finds a marginal increase in allocation by 4 crore and reallocation within the schemes. The increase of 4 crore is made to the ADIP scheme, which is a grants-in aid programme for supply of assistive devices. This could be utilized for the supply of assistive devices to senior citizens. Similarly there is a lack of clarity on how the increased allocation to the Scheme for the implementation of persons with disabilities Act (SIBDA).
If utilized to fulfill the commitment to provide access in Heritage sites and for the purpose for which it is initiates (i.e) ensuring access in public buildings , universities etc,. then would amount to lack of utilization of maximum available resources. The following table explains the details of allocation by the Department.
Table Showing allocation to schemes of the Department of Disability Affairs
Schemes (Rs in Crore) | 2012-13 (Actual) | 2013-14 (RE) | 2014-15(BE) | 2014-15(RE) | 2015-16(BE) |
DDRS | 46.99 | 80.50 | 80.00 | 45.45 | 54 |
National Institutes | 104.69 | 136 | 147.16 | 55.27 | 118 |
ADIP | 70.60 | 96 | 98 | 90 | 112.95 |
PWD Act Implemtation | 20.03 | 58.50 | 71.00 | 32.54 | 98.20 |
Scheme for the employment of the physically challengend | 0.50 | 1.00 | 1.80 | 0.45 | 0.45 |
Other programmes for the welfare of the physically handicapped | 7.71 | 60.70 | 70.10 | 20.71 | 44.79 |
Post Matric Scholarship for students with disabilities | 0.00 | .05 | 10.70 | 1.80 | 10.80 |
NHFDC | 20 | 31 | 33 | 33.30 | 31.50 |
ALIMCO | 20.0 | 0.01 | 21.0 | ||
RCI | 6.25 | 4.35 | 4.90 | ||
Rajiv Gandhi Fellowship | 15.30 | 9.00 | 7.20 | ||
National Programme for persons with disabilities | 5.00 | 0.02 | 5.00 | ||
Social security and welfare | 142.69 | 105.19 | 145.18 | ||
Total | 270.52 | 463.75 | 632.89 | 441.06 | 636.94 |
Source: Union Budget and Economic Survey, Government of India
The social protection programmes of the Ministry of Rural development include persons with disabilities as one of their target groups. The data on allocation and expenditure under these programmes are not available and are not mandated for.
Ministry of Human Resource development (MHRD), Ministry of Health and Family Welfare(MoHFW) and Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports (MYAS) are other Ministries that has allocation towards persons with disabilities. It is observed that status quo in allocation is maintained by all the Ministries except the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports, where it could be observed that there is a decrease in allocation.
The National Mental health programme one of the key programmes for persons with psychosocial disability finds no allocation in the financial year 2015-16. This is the only community initiative for persons with psychosocial disabilities.
Prepared by: Equals, Centre for Promotion of Social Justice.
Source: http://indiabudget.nic.in/index.asp