People with special needs require our empathy, not sympathy: Vice President

New Delhi, Nov 13: Vice President M. Venkaiah Naidu today emphasized the need to build an inclusive society that is sensitive to the needs of differently-abled persons. He said that people with special needs require empathy and not sympathy. Interacting with the staff and trainees of the ‘Composite Regional Centre (CRC) for Skill Development and Rehabilitation of Persons with Disabilities’ at Nellore, Andhra Pradesh today, he said that differently-abled persons can excel in any field if an enabling and conducive environment is created for them. Referring to India’s stellar performance at the recently held Tokyo Paralympics, he said the determination and hard work displayed by Paralympians have inspired millions of Indians. They have proved that any disability can be overcome through grit and willpower. The Vice President called for creating disabled-friendly public infrastructure for barrier-free travel. Praising CRC for empowering Divyangjans through skilling training, he also urged the private sector to come forward and actively provide employment to people with disabilities. On this occasion, the Vice President also distributed aids and appliances to the Divyang beneficiaries. CRC, Nellore is functioning under the administrative control National Institute for the Empowerment of Persons with Intellectual Disabilities (NIEPID), Secunderabad, and is currently providing skill development training to specially-abled persons in various vocational trades such as data entry operation, sewing machine operation, Office Assistant training and LED board making, among others. Officials of National Institute for the Empowerment of Persons with Intellectual Disabilities, Secunderabad (NIEPID), staff and trainees of CRC, Nellore were present on the occasion. Later in the day, the Vice President inaugurated Kousalya Sadan - Rural Self-Empowerment Training Institute (RSETI) at Swarna Bharat Trust, Nellore. Inaugurating the vocational training centre, Naidu emphasized that empowering women, economically and socially, is critical to the developmental story of our nation. The focus of Kousalya Sadan is to impart vocational skills from the underprivileged sections of society. On this occasion, Naidu also interacted with Chenchu tribal children at the Trust who came from the Erragondapalem village near Srisailam, Andhra Pradesh. Magunta Sreenivasula Reddy, Member, Lok Sabha, Kamineni Srinivas, former Minister, Andhra Pradesh and other dignitaries were present.