The Indian government, under the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act of 2016, recognizes 21 specific disabilities. These are aimed at ensuring equal opportunities, protection of rights, and full participation in society for individuals with these conditions.
Here is a list of those 21 disabilities:
- Blindness: A condition of complete or near-complete absence of vision.
- Low Vision: Visual impairment, not necessarily blindness, but severe enough to cause difficulty with daily activities.
- Leprosy Cured Persons: Individuals who have been cured of leprosy but may still face disabilities or societal stigma.
- Hearing Impairment (Deaf): Loss of hearing in both ears to the point where communication through hearing is impossible, even with amplification.
- Speech and Language Disability: Difficulties in producing speech sounds or understanding and using language for communication.
- Locomotor Disability: Disability of the bones, joints, or muscles leading to substantial restriction of the movement of the limbs or any form of cerebral palsy.
- Dwarfism: A genetic or medical condition resulting in an adult height of 4 feet 10 inches (147 cm) or less.
- Intellectual Disability: Significant limitations both in intellectual functioning (reasoning, learning, problem-solving) and in adaptive behavior, which covers a range of everyday social and practical skills.
- Mental Illness: A condition that affects a person's thinking, feeling, mood, or behavior (e.g., schizophrenia, bipolar disorder).
- Autism Spectrum Disorder: A developmental disability affecting communication and social interaction.
- Cerebral Palsy: A group of disorders affecting a person's ability to move and maintain balance and posture.
- Muscular Dystrophy: A group of genetic diseases that cause progressive weakness and loss of muscle mass.
- Acid Attack Victims: Individuals who have been disfigured due to acid attacks, leading to various disabilities.
- Parkinson’s Disease: A progressive nervous system disorder that affects movement.
- Hemophilia: A hereditary genetic disorder that impairs the body's ability to control blood clotting or coagulation.
- Thalassemia: An inherited blood disorder that causes the body to have less hemoglobin than normal.
- Sickle Cell Disease: A group of inherited red blood cell disorders.
- Specific Learning Disabilities: Disorders that affect the ability to understand or use spoken or written language, do mathematical calculations, coordinate movements, or direct attention (e.g., Dyslexia, Dysgraphia, Dyscalculia).
- Multiple Sclerosis: A potentially disabling disease of the brain and spinal cord (central nervous system).
- Deaf-Blindness: A combination of hearing and visual impairments, causing extreme difficulty in communication and other developmental and educational needs.
- Multiple Disabilities: Having two or more disabilities as defined above.
Understanding and recognizing these disabilities is crucial for creating an inclusive society and providing appropriate support and accommodations for individuals living with them.
