Lack of Data & Invisibility of Persons with Disabilities – National Centre for Promotion of Employment for Disabled People

According to WHO, over 1 billion people are estimated to experience disability. This correlates to 15% of the world’s population who often require health care services. And due to the rise in chronic health conditions and the aging of the population, the number of people experiencing disability is on the rise. An estimated 46% of older people aged 60 years and above are people with disabilities. One in every five women is likely to experience a disability during her lifetime and one in every ten children is a child with a disability. In terms of the prevalence of disabilities, it is well covered even if figures remain disputed. However, very little is known about the conditions and quality of life, access to services, and their participation in cultural and recreational activities. Disability continues to remain largely absent from data collection, monitoring mechanisms, and mainstream development narratives. This invisibility often results in development narratives unintentionally leaving out persons with disabilities. Policymakers and practitioners tend to leave out persons with disabilities due to the unavailability of data. They continue to remain discriminated which also reduces their access to social services and creates a general lack of recognition. ‘Under-identified’, ‘under-represented’, and ‘excluded’, are terms that are synonymous with the lived realities of persons with disabilities.

The UN Expert Group on Disability Data and Statistics, Monitoring and Evaluation finds that ‘data disaggregated by disability in all areas will be essential to ensure progress is measured and persons with disabilities are not left behind in future from the mainstream development programs.’

As such, the National Centre on Promotion of Employment of Disabled People (NCPEDP) which is India’s leading cross-disability not for profit organization working towards the empowerment of persons with disabilities, launched the ambitious “Missing Millions Campaign” to create visibility and awareness around the issues faced by persons with disabilities before a larger audience.

For India, which is home to over 70 million people with disabilities, with few rights, few entitlements, and even fewer opportunities, the need for disability disaggregated data is of utmost importance.

Overall Aim of the Event

To work towards “Leave No-one Behind” and create awareness around the millions of persons with disabilities missing from education, employment, sports, and recreation to name a few.

Specific Objectives

Join us in creating awareness around the missing millions of persons with disabilities
Share your story or experience of discrimination and exclusion
Chart advocacy campaigns to find the missing millions

Schedule

Date: 10^th June 2022

Time: 3:00 PM – 5:00 PM

Venue: The Foundry, 17 Oval Way, London, SE11 5RR

Working Languages

English
International Sign Language

Contact

Niharika Das – Niharika_das@ncpedp.org

Akshay Jain – akshay_jain@ncpedp.org

Major General Ian Cardozo

A decorated war veteran, Major General Cardozo became the first officer with a disability in the Indian Army to be approved for command of an infantry battalion and brigade, after losing a leg during the battle of Sylhet in Bangladesh.He was also the first officer of the Indian Army to be awarded the Sena Medal for gallantry on a patrol in the erstwhile North-East Frontier Agency (NEFA) in 1960. Major General Cardozo has been part of the Sino-Indian war of 1962, and the Indo-Pak wars of 1965 and 1971. After retirement as Chief of Staff of a Corps in the North East of India,
he worked as Vice President of the War Wounded Foundation and was later appointed as the Chairman of the Rehabilitation Council of India. His books ‘Param Vir’, and ‘The Sinking of INS Khukri’ have been widely acclaimed.

Mr. Pradeep Gupta

Pradeep Gupta, a prominent figure in the IT industry, chairs the National Centre for Promotion of Employment for Disabled People (NCPEDP). He’s lauded for his leadership and mentoring, receiving the quot;National Entrepreneurship Award as the Best Mentor quot; from the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, Government of India. He’s deeply engaged in fostering startups globally, evident in his roles as an Angel investor, Chief Mentor at Electropreneur Park, and co-founder of the Indian Angel Network.

Recognising Pradeep’s contribution to the startup ecosystem of India, the Government has put him on the Investment Management Committee of its 10,000 crore ($1.25 Bn) Fund of Funds.

As the Chairman of the CyberMedia Group, overseeing brands like Dataquest and PCQuest, Pradeep remains at the forefront of media innovation. His contributions have earned him prestigious awards, including the Distinguished Alumni accolades from IIT Delhi and IIM Calcutta, as well as the Helen Keller award for his work in the disability sector. He features in the book “100 Great IITians”.

Pradeep holds degrees from IIT Delhi (1975) and IIM Calcutta (1977), and has been awarded an Honorary Doctorate by Rai University for his remarkable contributions.

Mr Arvind Gupta

Arvind Gupta has dedicated the past three decades to leading and innovating within the digital space. As the Head and Co-Founder of Digital India Foundation, he has committed himself to digital inclusion and policy innovation.His role extends to academia, where he shares his knowledge as an Adjunct Professor at IIT-BHU.

Mr. Gupta’s extensive career spans sectors and continents, excelling in Consumer Internet, Digital Media, Payment Systems, Analytics, and the Data Economy. Recognized on the Global FinTech Top100 list, he also holds prestigious roles at the World Economic Forum and OECD.

He received the Eisenhower Global Fellowship for Innovation in 2014, the DataQuest Pathbreaker of the Year award, and the Distinguished Centenary Alumni award from IIT-BHU. As CEO of MyGov, he spearheaded efforts for digital inclusion through participative governance.

Mr. Gupta drives successful startups like amplify.ai and ApnaPay. As a Founder Member of iSPiRT, he champions nationwide Digital Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) initiatives, showcasing his commitment to digital progress. He’s a prominent speaker at global forums and contributes articles on the digital economy and governance to prestigious publications like The Harvard Business Review and The World Economic Forum. Recently, he joined an advisory council addressing digital monopolies.

Mr. Arun Seth

Board member, Narayana Health and Jubilant Pharmova Mr Arun Seth took early retirement from his corporate career to focus on bringing the benefits of IT/Telecom to real world businesses in energy, health, fintech, medtech, education, hospitality etc. via a vibrant innovative entrepreneurial eco system and a focus on giving back to society. He had been very active with Govt and Regulators on shaping Telecoms Policy and IT policy being an elected member of Nasscom for more than a decade. Currently an independent Director on FMRT, IITK and on the board of listed cos Jubilant Pharmova Ltd, Jubilant Ingrevia Ltd, Narayana Hrudalaya. An alumnus of IIT Kanpur and IIM Calcutta – he has worked in senior commercial positions in the BT, HCL, Usha Martin and the UB Group, in the last 40+ years.

Mr. A.S. Narayanan

Mr. Narayanan has been working with the deaf community for the past 25 years. He is the Secretary of National Association of the Deaf, India. He is actively involved in the setting up and functioning of Indian Sign Language Research and Training Centre. Currently, he is leading the campaign for the recognition of Indian Sign Language as one of the official languages of India, issuance of driving licenses for deaf people, and captioning on TV, among other issues.

Overall Aim of the Event

Specific Objectives

Schedule

Working Languages

Contact

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