Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha said on Thursday that the government will prepare a legal framework to ensure employment opportunities to specially-abled people in the private sector.

He said reservation for jobs for the specially abled persons has been increased to 4 per cent from the earlier 3 per cent in J and K.

In the last financial year, 384 specially-abled persons were provided government jobs. The posts — whether under the public service commission or J&K Services Selection Board — will be filled within six months, he announced at a function here.

Lt Governor Sinha and Union Minister of Social Justice and Empowerment Dr Virendra Kumar inaugurated J&K’s first festival of Inclusion, ‘Purple Fest’, which aims to showcase a kaleidoscope of abilities hidden inside disabilities and celebrates resilience of “Divyangjan”. The Purple Festival is also a call for action to the people and exhorts the society to take proactive steps in creating a more inclusive environment.

On the occasion, the Lt Governor observed that in many areas of life, be it music, films, sports, art, or literature, persons with disabilities have achieved success and greater goals and today, they are inspiring the entire society. He said many such great personalities have proved that they have no less capability but they have special abilities to contribute to nation building.

As many as 5,000 people are participating in this unique event which is of, by, and for “Divyangjans”.

A fully accessible event is an effort to showcase the minds of persons with special abilities — full of courage, strength and determination.

This Festival of Inclusion will be a milestone in the journey of empowerment of the specially-abled in J&K UT. It will inspire every citizen to work united for empowerment and rehabilitation of specially-abled and to build an inclusive society, he added.

The Lt Governor said J&K administration was committed to creating an environment that provides equal opportunities and protects the rights of specially-abled persons.

“We have achieved saturation in distribution of motorised scooties. The administration has taken over Abhinandan Home for specially-abled students,” the Lt Governor said.

He said there was a need for all the stakeholders, society and NGOs to adopt a multi-dimensional approach and make collaborative efforts to enable persons with disabilities to realise their full individual potential.

“Private companies and individual innovators have made impressive strides in new technology in the last few years. I urge them to develop user friendly instruments for the specially-abled which will help in their rehabilitation process and empowerment,” the Lt Governor added.

The Lt Governor felicitated the specially-abled ambassadors including para athletes and sportspersons for their outstanding contribution in their respective fields. He also handed over wheelchairs and assistive devices to the beneficiaries.

The two-day event will witness distribution of assistive devices, sports competitions in various disciplines, cultural events, fashion show, talent hunt and exhibition.