Editorial
Caring for those challenged
A national policy and action framework needed
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has stated in very clear terms that welfare of the physically challenged is high on her government's agenda. She has issued a directive to the authorities concerned to make sure that such people get jobs as per the quota reserved for them. It is a welcome move but there is so much more to be done, especially among the children.
In the first place, it is necessary to address the issue within the framework of a broad national policy. It is basically a rights-based issue and not something that should rest with a mere expression of compassion and disjointed efforts on the fringes. All the more because the whole world has advanced tremendously in catering for the needs of the physically and mentally challenged.
The problem that makes it difficult to create the conditions in which the autistic babies can grow up is the absence of infrastructure. Even their number is not known, as there is no database. So need-based planning and action are still an elusive goal as far full rehabilitation of the autistic is concerned.
The launching of the Centre for Neurodevelopment and Autism in Children at the Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University as part of the government' plan to provide the counseling and care that autistic children need augurs well. In this context, special schools run by competent people have to be set up to provide the service that they need in an extended sense. The prime minister has directed the ministry concerned to appoint a psychologist in every school to help students. We believe the psychologist will have an important role to play in maintaining the mental health of students.
The job of helping the mentally or physically challenged cannot be accomplished by the government alone. The NGOs and the media have to come forward and make collective efforts to help these people find their rightful niche in society. At the moment, it is a much talked about issue, but very little has been done so far at the implementation level. Society has to respond wholeheartedly to address the problems faced by the physically or mentally challenged. A change in social outlook, is needed to cater to their needs. They must not be looked upon as a burden, rather they should be given the opportunities to shine in the fields of their choice.
Materially, alongside the government, local bodies and the NGOs, the private sector's corporate social responsibility must duly embrace this agenda in a collective national effort to turn the physically and mentally challenged of different age groups into useful citizens in their own ways.
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