More than 3,500 persons with disabilities to be nominated to local bodies in first phase: Chief Minister M.K. Stalin

Chief Minister M.K. Stalin on Saturday announced that under the two new legislations to nominate persons with disabilities to all local bodies in the State, a total of 13,357 members will be appointed to local governance roles. Of them, in the first phase, 650 individuals will be appointed to urban local bodies and 2,984 to rural local bodies, starting from July 1.

Speaking at a felicitation function organised by the coordination committee of persons with disabilities to thank him for passing those legislations, Mr. Stalin said applications will be invited district-wise from July 1, and a committee led by the Collector will scrutinise them. A member from the district-level committee of persons with disabilities will also be part of the selection panel, he said.

He added that the appointed members could participate in local council meetings and would receive honorariums on a par with elected members. “I request all representatives of associations working for the welfare of persons with disabilities to continue close collaboration with the government. Let us move towards a truly inclusive society,” he said.

“Today, persons with disabilities are making strides in all sectors and achieving remarkable success by breaking societal barriers. You are proving that people facing challenges due to health conditions, or accidents can overcome them and succeed like anyone else. This is a government for all. That is what some divisive forces and those submissive to them find hard to accept. They cannot tolerate inclusive growth, social justice and equality. These are the very people who attack the DMK government. But the strength to defeat such forces politically comes from the support of the people,” Mr. Stalin said. In his speech, he also recalled at length the contributions of his father and former Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi towards the welfare of persons with disabilities and his efforts in honouring Thiruvalluvar and promoting the Thirukkural..

This was the first public event held at Valluvar Kottam after its recent renovation and infrastructure upgrade at a cost of ₹80 crore.

Ministers, officials, representatives of associations for persons with disabilities and activists including Thangam, Jhansi Rani, Simmachandran, Gopinath, Manoharan, Deepak Nathan and Arman Ali were present.