India has an underlying, unspoken issue of disability certification which does not become part of mainstream media narrative or even academic discussion. According to the 76th round of NSS of 2018, only 28.8 percent of Persons with Disabilities have disability certificates in India. To solve this issue, Government of India came up with the c0ncept of Unique Disability Identity (UDID) card. To understand the issue of unique disability Identity card, we need to understand the background and its precursor disability certification which is being issued by the district administration. In the current scenario, it is disability certificate which holds more significance than the UDID card as all the facilities and services provided by the state government are linked to the disability certificate. Only recently, it is being announced that 17 centrally sponsored schemes will be mandatorily will be requiring UDID cards. Such a decisions will have wider ramifications. Let us first understand the dynamics of disability certification and the process one has to go through such a tedious process of paperwork and physical verification.

The process of Disability certification procurement

This example is reflective of ground reality of Deoghar, Jharkhand where our research is based, which may or may not align with realities of other places. It is a general observation. For a detailed case study read my previous article titled ‘The case for Disability certification from Sonaraithari’ (https://projectsamajh.in/2023/01/25/the-case-for-disability-certification-from-sonaraithari/)

For applying for disability certification, there are both online as well as offline method. Major chunk of people apply through offline method, mostly coming from rural areas. The application form which is available offline is often a rough form, which mimics the original application and does not mention the date or time of submitted application form which creates problem in future tracking of application. There is a lack knowledge among the community regarding the entire process which several middlemen exploit and earns commissions. After that one has to stand in the queue for getting the medical evaluation of disability which is often crowded as the medical camp is organised once or twice in a month where absence of doctor becomes an issue. Ideally, it takes 15 days, which may go up to 1 month. Once, the disability certificate is made, the applicant has to personally collect it. There is no elaborate delivery mechanism which can deliver it to the homes of the applicants, especially in rural areas, where postal addresses are not complete. Due to which a considerable number of disability certificate doesn’t get actually delivered. In some cases, it is sent to block level community health centre which is itself far off from village panchayats.

The case for UDID

UDID card project was introduced in 2016 with the purpose of solving multiple issues with disability certification. Key issues it seeks to address are-

• Online availability of data of Person with Disabilities across country through a centralized web application
• Online filing and submission of registration application form for disability certificate/ Universal ID card; Offline applications may also be accepted and subsequently digitized by agencies
• Quick Assessment process for calculating the percentage of disability by the hospitals/ Medical Board
• Non-duplication of PwDs data
• Online renewal and update of information by Person with Disabilities/ on their behalf
• MIS reporting framework
• Effective management including interoperability of the benefits / schemes launched by the Government for Person with Disability (PwD) (Source- Swablamban card website)

As above stated goals suggests, UDID seeks to adopt a comprehensive approach and if implemented with proper strategy, it can be a game changer for persons with disabilities in India. According to the latest available data, 88,18,452 cards has been issued till now. However, there are instances, where officially the cards are being dispatched but not delivered

Our finding in a grassroot survey on the state of Disability certification and penetration of UDID.

We conducted a grassroot survey on access of disability certification of two gram panchayats in the first half of 2022 under NCPEDP fellowship by Kumar Mahavir in Sonaraithari block of Deoghar District namely Binjha and Sonraithari gram panchayats which comprises of 16 villages having population of 12,366. The survey was conducted among 207 Persons with Disabilities between the age bracket of 6-65 years

The survey clearly indicates that there is lack of access of disability certification and for UDID, the situation is even more dismal.

Therefore, before making possession of UDID mandatory, the governments should campaign for making UDID accessible and hassle free for persons with disabilities.

Recommendations for making UDID accessible and relevant for Persons with Disabilities

1. Enhancing the digital literacy of persons with disabilities with dedicated campaigns in urban and rural areas, so that they can utilise the benefits UDID by voluntary exercise and and not becoming dependent on middlemen and private agencies for going through a simple application process.
2. Easing out the medical verification process by introducing online medical verification wherever possible and making in person verification only in cases where it is not possible to testify the disability of the person through online medium It order to make the process hassle free and reducing the crowd at the medical verification camps. It will also solve the problem of availability of doctors at a particular physical location.
3. Linking the UDID project to other prominent projects of Central government such as Ayushman Bharat, PMAY, Skill India campaign and other major social security projects for ensuring effective penetration of UDID.
4. Using the database of UDID to understand the accessibility needs of Persons with Disabilities, which has a interactive interface where individual needs can be specified.
5. Linking all the schemes and concessions at central and state governments for Persons with disabilities to UDID to make it one stop authorisation for Persons with Disabilities across India.
6. Enhancing delivery mechanism system by connecting it to municipalities and panchayats to ensure accountability till the last mile.
7. Linkage of UDID with Aadhar.

Conclusion

UDID (Unique disability Identity ) is certainly a revolutionary idea and an empowering tool for Persons with Disabilities but if it has to gain wider currency among community, it has to learn from the gaps of disability certification process and integrate elements from latest technology such as interactive app based solution , while understanding evolving needs of Persons with Disabilities. It has to learn from the trajectory of Aadhar which integrated critical services of every citizens and became an indispensable part of everyday life.

About the Author

Kumar Mahavir

Javed Abidi-NCPEDP Fellow on Disability

Contact- mahavir.ncpedp@gmail.com