Disabled Persons Welfare

RPWD Act 2016 — Paradigm Shift

The Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act 2016 replaced the Persons with Disabilities (Equal Opportunities, Protection of Rights and Full Participation) Act 1995, implementing the UN Convention on Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD) ratified by India on October 1, 2007.

Key changes from 1995 Act to RPWD 2016:

Aspect	PWD Act 1995	RPWD Act 2016
Categories of disability	7	21 (added autism, specific learning disabilities, mental illness, multiple sclerosis, Parkinson's, haemophilia, thalassemia, sickle cell, etc.)
Benchmark disability	40%+ disability	40%+ for reservations; "specified disability" for rights
Reservation in education	3% in govt institutions	5% in govt higher education
Reservation in employment	3% in govt jobs	4% in govt jobs (1% each: blindness/low vision; deaf/hard of hearing; locomotor/cerebral palsy/leprosy/dwarfism/acid attack/muscular dystrophy; autism/intellectual/multiple/specific learning disabilities)
Chief Commissioner	Advisory role	District Magistrate as ex-officio District Disability Rehabilitation Centre chief
Rights framework	Welfare approach	Rights-based approach — duty on state to remove barriers

Source: RPWD Act 2016, Sections 3-46

UDID — Unique Disability ID Card

UDID (Unique Disability Identification) is a national online portal (www.swavlambancard.gov.in) for disability certification and card generation:

• Replaces all earlier state-issued disability certificates
• QR code-based smart card with medical and personal details
• Issued by CMO/Medical Superintendent after assessment by Medical Board
• Linked to all disability-specific schemes and reservations

Rajasthan's Jan Aadhaar integration of UDID ensures scheme benefits are automatically routed to identified PwD beneficiaries — cited nationally as a model implementation.

Disability Welfare Schemes in Rajasthan

National Schemes:

• National Scholarship for PwD (under NPDPD) — Pre-matric, Post-matric, and Top-class scholarships; up to ₹20,000/year
• ADIP (Assistance to Disabled Persons for Purchase/Fitting of Aids and Appliances) — Assistive devices (wheelchairs, tricycles, hearing aids, crutches, white canes) supplied free/subsidised to BPL PwD; Rajasthan's district-level camps distribute under ADIP
• Deen Dayal Disabled Rehabilitation Scheme (DDDRS) — Funding to NGOs for rehabilitation of PwD

Rajasthan State Schemes:

• Mukhyamantri Vishesh Yogyajan Scholarship — Additional state scholarship for PwD students
• Palanhar Yojana — Children of disabled parents are one of the 9 eligible categories
• IGNDPS top-up — Rajasthan provides enhanced state supplement to national disability pension under NSAP
• Rajasthan Handicapped Persons' Corporation — Concessional loans, self-employment assistance
• National Divyang Finance and Development Corporation (NDFDC) — Central term loans at subsidised rates (interest rates 5–8%) for self-employment; NGO micro-credit at 5%

Reservation in Rajasthan Government jobs: 4% horizontal reservation for PwD (aligned with RPWD Act 2016).

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