Centre committed to work for uplift of divyangs: Gehlot

The Centre is trying to empower 'divyangs' (people with disability) economically and socially and making efforts to reach out to more and more differently- abled people, Union minister Thawar Chand Gehlot said today.

The government is committed to serve divyangs and work for their uplift in the society, the social justice and empowerment minister stressed while launching the 'Rashtriya Vayoshri Yojana' here for persons with disabilities.

Under the scheme, senior citizens belonging to the below poverty line (BPL) category will be provided with physical aids and assisted-living devices for health-related ailments.

The equipment distributed as part of the scheme include tricycles, wheelchairs, artificial organs, callipers, hearing aids, and sticks for the visually impaired people, among others.

"This ministry was rarely known earlier, but now it has increased its reach. So far, 10 lakh people in the country have benefited out of its schemes. The government has distributed equipment worth Rs 600 crore so far," Gehlot said.

"We are committed to serve the divyangs. The government is also empowering them economically, educationally and socially," he said.

The way the ministry has worked in the last four years, some of its work has become a sort of "world record," Gehlot claimed.