The committee, appointed by the Ministry of Social Welfare under the Chairpersonship of Dr Sudha Kaul, Vice Chairperson, Indian Institute for Cerebral Palsy, Kolkata to draft a comprehensive law presented the final draft of new legislation, “The Rights of Persons with Disabilities Bill, 2011”, to Mukul Wasnik, Minister for Social Justice and Empowerment, here.
The proposed law seeks to repeal the Persons with Disabilities Act of 1995 and to replace it with a comprehensive rights-based law, suitably aligned with the provisions of UNCRPD.
The Persons with Disabilities Act, 1995, was proposed to be replaced by the ministry in the light of the experience gained in the implementation of the Act, developments that have taken place in the disability sector over the years, and also the commitments under the UNCRPD.
This law will ensure dignity and equality to disabled people of the country. Notably, India has an estimated 60 million disabled people.