Speakers at a discussion said the challenged people need social support for their proper
rehabilitation and family integration.
They viewed collective effort of both the public and private organizations have become
an urgent need for ensuring their fundamental rights for their social dignity.
Terming the challenged people as the integral part of the society they put emphasis on
mainstreaming them through creating a disabled-friendly atmosphere.
The observations came at a consultation meeting with stakeholders held at Safawang
Training hall in Rajshahi city Sunday. “Disability isn’t obstacle” was main slogan of the
programme.
Centre for the Rehabilitation of the Paralysed (CRP) organized the consultation in
association with ‘Integrated Disability and Livelihood Project’ aims at portraying its
aims, objectives and overall activities before all stakes.
The meeting discussed elaborately devising ways and means how to expand the CRP
activities for well-being of the people with special needs.
CRP Center Manager Soma Begum and its Medical Officer Dr Mustafizur Rahman,
Former Deputy Director of Department of Social Service Mozammel Haque and its
Registration Officer Kamruzzaman, Executive Director of Barendra Multipurpose
Cooperative Society Shaheen Akhter and President of Metropolitan Press Club Mahtab
Uddin spoke on the occasion, among others. Advocate Saifur Rahman Khan chaired the
session.
In his keynote presentation, Mohsiur Rahman, Divisional Coordinator of CRP, gave a
brief resume of the consultation seeking well-thought-out opinion and recommendations
from the participants how to transform the disabled people into worthy citizens.
He said the CRP believes in proper rehabilitation and family integration of the persons
with disabilities through treatment and vocational training and has been working
relentlessly to attain the goal.
In addition to Savar, CRP has expanded its activities to Rajshahi, Chittagong and
Barishal for welfare of the persons with special needs.
Soma Begum said the CRP from its very beginning commits to work for rehabilitation of
the persons with disabilities. She, however, said the charitable organization corporation
alone isn’t capable for sustainable development of the disadvantaged community but the
charitable organizations have a vital role in this regard as they have capacity to provide
jobs to the disabled people.
She urged the richer-class people and other philanthropists to stand besides the
challenged population. She also urged the disabled people to make them fit for the jobs
for providing minimum services to the service- providers.
Moreover, the surrounding mindset towards the challenged people should be changed as
it’s adjudged as one of the major problems than that of the disability, she added. -BSS
