AGARTALA, June 19 (TIWN): Forest and Rural Development minister Naresh Jamatia today urged for greater integration of people with special needs into the mainstream and said that integrated efforts with people from all sections would help in better society building.

Addressing a tool kit distribution programme for people with physical disabilities and special needs at Abhoynagar the today, Jamatia said that the government wants better inclusive efforts of nation and society building involving people all walks of life including those with special needs. “We often have a perception that such people might be a burden on us. I would like to say that time has proven on several occasions that if proper training and motivation is given, they can do better than many of the supposedly common people”, he stated.

 The Vocational Rehabilitation Centre for Handicapped, an undertaking of the Ministry of Labour and Employment today organized a programme for distribution of tool kits to trained persons with disabilities at Abhoynagar today. The programme was sponsored by the Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) Limited. ONGC Tripura Asset Manager VP Mahawar handed over the tool kit support materials to a group of nineteen selected beneficiaries. Speaking about ONGC’s role in assisting social welfare programmes, the minister stated that the State-owned oil and gas exploration company went out of their way to aid the state and its people in different sectors.

Tool kits were distributed among artisans of five different trades today. Beneficiaries were selected from among metallurgy, carpentry, technical repair, commercial and cutting and tailoring trades. Officials of the Vocational Rehabilitation Centre for Handicapped later said that the centre was contemplating to start training and support programmes for artisans from printing, beautician and computer hardware maintenance and support from the next financial year.