TN: Differently-abled People Demand Women’s Entitlement Allowance Without Bias

Differently-abled people and their caregivers held attention-grabbing protests across Tamil Nadu on Monday and demanded the state government's unconditional provision for the magalir urimai thogai (women's entitlement allowance). They held protests under the banner of the Tamil Nadu Association for the Rights of All Types of Differently Abled and Caregivers (TARATDAC).

The protestors demanded the state to reconsider applications rejected on the grounds that differently-abled women already receive allowance from the revenue and social welfare departments.

"Differently-abled women have twice the burden, so they must be provided both the allowances. What they receive as differently abled people is assistance; what they must receive as women is their entitlement allowance," explained Jhansi Rani, general secretary of TARATDAC, speaking to media persons from the site of protest in Chennai amidst heavy rain.

"The neighbouring state Karnataka recently promised Rs 2,000 monthly assistance to the woman head of every family; nobody is denied the amount on flimsy grounds. For many years, women have been receiving Rs 500 in West Bengal; many women of a single family are eligible for it," she compared.

"The magalir urimai thogai in Tamil Nadu was announced to acknowledge women's labour. How is it fair that differently-abled women are denied it?" she asked.

The association also demanded the state not to deny the allowance for women in families with differently-abled people. TARATDAC observed that many of the applications by women in such families were rejected on false grounds.

Nambu Rajan said, "While calculating the economic status of a family for the scheme, the retrofitted two-wheeler of differently-abled people was included in the category of four-wheeler. Due to this, many of the economically weaker families with a differently abled person were excluded from benefitting from the scheme."

TARATDAC observed that 1 lakh differently-abled people and families with differently-abled people were denied the allowance.

"The state must resolve such faults and include all differently abled families in the scheme," said Rajan, TARATDAC.

While submitting their petitions to district-level officials, the protestors urged them to reconsider their applications for the women's entitlement scheme allowance.

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin launched the Kalaignar Women Entitlement Scheme on September 15, a monthly assistance of Rs 1,000 to women heads of families in the state.