Karnataka chief minister Siddaramaiah’s decision to revoke the move to reduce by one-fifth the budget allocation for persons with disabilities and senior citizens has been welcomed by NGOs across the state.

The Congress government had last week slashed the budgetary allocation for these vulnerable groups to Rs 10 crore from Rs 54 crore, drawing intense condemnation. The backlash became so intense that the chief minister was forced to backtrack and raise the allocation for this fiscal back to Rs 54 crore, making the announcement while inaugurating a programme on International Day of Persons with Disabilities on Tuesday.

Disabled persons and senior citizens who receive state government benefits total 13.24 lakh people in Karnataka. Six schemes for the disabled — distribution of hearing aids, braille kits, motor-operated two-wheelers, battery-run wheelchairs and sewing machines, talking laptops and crutches — had come under a cloud of uncertainty.

Gautam Agarwal, general secretary of the National Federation of the Blind, Karnataka chapter, held a two-day protest at Freedom Park in Bengaluru. He told The
Telegraph that the number of beneficiaries had gone up.

“Chief minister Siddaramaiah has revoked his decision and since announced Rs 54 crore towards the allocation of disability funds in the supplementary bills. The association had approached several Congress leaders and top officials to reconsider the cuts, which has been fruitful. At the moment 22,790 people are awaiting a response after submitting applications for disability aid,” Agarwal said.

He said office-bearers of the organisation in New Delhi met Congress veteran Jairam Ramesh on Wednesday and urged him to ensure that disabled persons don’t face discrimination.