“There are no special education centres in the area I live in for people like me who have multiple disabilities.

I was born dumb, deaf and blind. My family is from a small village in Khanpur, Haripur and every day, I travel to a government special education centre in Taxila, which is some 20km away. My father is a driver and the transport itself costs a lot for the family.

I enrolled in a vocational training centre and learned how to weave furniture. I can weave chairs, charpoys and other furniture and have been doing that at the centre for a year now. I have mastered the skill and can work without any assistance.

I do not want to be a burden to my family. I want to support by family and prove to the world that my disabilities do not hold me back.

My goal is to get a job in a government or private furniture manufacturing unit or teach other disabled children how to weave furniture at a government training facility.”

I request the government to establish more schools for disabled children and help them learn skills through which they can make a livelihood. I urge the government to help disabled people get good jobs as well.”

Published in Dawn, March 2nd, 2019