PESHAWAR: Representatives of people living with disabilities have urged the provincial government not to push their vulnerable community “further into darkness” and said such people needed support and not further challenges.

During a news conference here on Monday, special persons, led by Zardad Bulbul, called for comprehensive reforms to ensure equal opportunities in education, welfare employment and other sectors for their development.

They demanded free education for children with disabilities in colleges and universities, along with reserved admission quotas.

The special persons urged the government to include artificial limbs, wheelchairs, hearing devices, and other essential assistive equipment in the Sehat Card Plus health insurance programme.

The participants urged provincial authorities to meet their demands and grant them due rights. They also demanded a monthly stipend through the Waseela Card similar to Punjab’s Himmat Card initiative.

The speakers highlighted the need for financial support under self-employment schemes to help persons with severe disabilities become self-reliant. They also pressed for the establishment of a separate department for disability affairs in the province, following the Sindh government’s model.

The speakers criticised the government for preparing the current draft of the Disability Act without consulting people with disabilities before sending it to the cabinet for consent.

They demanded that the job quota for persons with disabilities be increased from two per cent to four percent, noting that Sindh and Balochistan already offer a five per cent quota.

The speakers warned that if their demands were not met, they would protest outside the provincial assembly’s building on Dec 3 and could event march on the Chief Minister’s House.

Earlier, people with disabilities shared their problems with president of the Peshawar Press Club M Riaz, who promised his complete support.

Published in Dawn, November 18th, 2025