Himachal Pradesh Governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar on Monday said specially-abled (Divyang or disabled) do not need sympathy but they need to be given opportunities as they have different talents.
Addressing a function at Himachal Pradesh University that was organized by varsity and Umang Foundation to honour the specially-abled persons, The governor directed to waive off the hostel fees of disabled students living in the hostels of the university.
“Specially-abled persons are also an important part of the society and they have special talents. Many of them are guiding society with their significant contribution. So we need to change our attitude towards them,” he said, adding Prime Minister Narendra Modi has taken this initiative by providing computers, laptops, and other facilities to Divyangs.
He appreciated the efforts of the Umang Foundation in this direction and stated that other social organizations should come forward by taking inspiration from the foundation.
He also appreciated the university administration for providing facilities to specially-abled and said that more work should be done in this direction while directing the varsity authorities to construct a ramp in the university auditorium.
The Governor also felicitated the Divyang talents on the occasion.
HP University Vice-Chancellor Prof Sikander said ‘we need to be sensitive and work for the welfare of the weaker sections of the society. An attempt has been made to provide justice by setting up a legal cell in the university’.
He stated that the university was working for the all-around development of the specially-abled students and appealed to the general students to maintain the academic environment and assured to resolve their problems.
UGC Member Prof Nagesh Thakur, Umang Foundation chief Prof Ajai Srivastava were also present on the occasion among others.