Regarding Need to amend the disability threshold from 80 per cent to 50 per cent for availing assistance under ADIP Scheme and to provide Ayushman Cards to Divyangjan under Ayushman Bharat Scheme-Laid

Regarding Need to amend the disability threshold from 80 per cent to 50 per cent for availing assistance under ADIP Scheme and to provide Ayushman Cards to Divyangjan under Ayushman Bharat Scheme-Laid SHRI ANURAG SHARMA (JHANSI): I wish to draw the attention of the Hon?ble Minister of Social Justice and Empowerment to a matter of urgent public importance. Sir, under the ADIP Scheme (Assistance to Disabled Persons for Purchase/Fitting of Aids and Appliances), persons with 80 per cent or more disability are provided motorised tricycles or tricycles. Senior citizens are also provided walking sticks, canes, spectacles and other assistive devices. This initiative is commendable and has empowered lakhs of Divyangjan and elderly citizens towards self-reliance and dignity. However, the mandatory requirement of 80 per cent disability excludes many persons with 50 per cent to 79 per cent disability whose mobility is significantly impaired. In rural and semi-urban areas, particularly in Bundelkhand, such individuals are often financially unable to purchase motorised tricycles, thereby limiting their access to education, employment and social participation. I request that eligibility for motorised tricycles be reduced from 80 per cent to 50 per cent disability to widen coverage. Further, persons with disabilities suffering from serious illnesses, irrespective of age, should be prioritised for Ayushman Cards under Ayushman Bharat. Empowering persons with disabilities is our constitutional responsibility. I urge the Government to consider these suggestions sympathetically and issue necessary amendments at the earliest.