Specially-abled people are integral part of human resource: Union Minister

New Delhi [India], September 24 : Minister of Social Justice and Empowerment Dr Virendra Kumar on Thursday stated that Specially-abled people are an integral part of human resources and said that to provide the PwDs maximum accessibility is the utmost priority of the Centre government.
Addressing an event organised by the Indian Sign Language Research and Training Centre (ISLRTC) on the occasion of 'Sign Language Day', Kumar said, "PwDs are an integral part of human resources and to provide the maximum accessibility is the utmost priority of the Centre government."
"Various decisions and policies of the Ministry have been framed to ensure the empowerment and welfare of PwDs. Continuous efforts are being made to ensure the empowerment and mainstreaming PwDs to achieve Prime Minister's vision SabkaSaath, SabkaVikas, SabkaVishwas with SabkaPrayas," he said.
ISLRTC is an autonomous body under the Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities (Divyangjan) of the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment.
During the event, the Centre presented a documentary on 'Indian Sign Language Journey'.
Winners of the 4th Indian Sign Language Competition, 2021, a national level competition held for students with hearing disabilities, were also announced. Minister of Social Justice and Empowerment interacted with five winners from various places of India to share their experiences.
As per the MoU signed between ISLRTC and NCERT for conversion of NCERT textbooks into Indian Sign Language, digital format of converted textbooks for Class 1 to 5 were also launched during the programme.