bitter truth

Handicapped doctor forced to climb three floors to meet Health Ministry officials

Story by Sinniah Gurunathan, Trincomalee correspondent

It was a cruel and embarrassing irony that a disabled doctor who uses crutches to get about had to haul himself, step by painful step, up several flights of stairs to reach an office of the Ministry of Health, in Colombo. Dr. Kanagarajah Nandakumaran, a polio victim since childhood, was describing his ordeal to the audience at a special event held in Trincomalee to mark International Disabled Persons Day. Dr. Nandakumaran Dr. Nandakumaran is the Provincial Director of Health Services for the North. The Disabled Persons Day programme was organised by the Eastern Province Department of Social Services, with the support of several non-government organisations. The event took place in the auditorium of the Trincomalee Vigneswara Maha Vidiyalayam. “It is a pity that the authorities have no thought for disabled people when they construct buildings,” said the doctor, who had to climb three floors to meet Health Ministry officials in Colombo. Dr. Nandakumaran was stricken by poliomyelitis (infantile paralysis) at the age of two, and has used crutches all his life. After qualifying as a medical practitioner, he served in several government hospitals before taking up his job as a medical overseer in the North and East. Speaking seated on a chair in front of the stage, Dr. Nandakumaran told his audience that there were laws to ensure equal treatment for disabled persons. “Unfortunately, these laws are only in writing and not sufficiently enforced,” the doctor said. “The disabled should not have to be confined to their homes. They should be given all the facilities they need to enjoy a normal life, just like other normal people. “The days of treating disabled persons as sympathy-seeking social outcasts are long over. The public and the authorities have a duty to ensure that the disabled enjoy equal rights, equal opportunity and parity of status in every aspect of life. “A person’s physical mobility is something he or she can lose very easily, in a matter of minutes, irrespective of caste, creed and race. The number of disabled in this country is increasing by the day. People are losing limbs and the use of their limbs in different situations – the conflict in the north, accidents and natural disasters. On average, some 180 citizens are disabled every day. “Considering the alarmingly high, and growing, number of permanently disabled people, it is surprising we have so few disabled-friendly buildings,” Dr. Nandakumaran said. The chief guest at the International Disabled Persons Day event was Trincomalee High Court Judge, M. Ilancheliyan. In his address, the judge appealed to the public to bring to the notice of the police or other relevant authorities any instance of disabled persons being treated badly or with disrespect. He said the law protected the disabled, and that legal action could be taken against parents who failed to provide their disabled children with a proper education and the facilities they needed.