KARACHI: Special Assistant to CM Sindh on Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities Syed Qasim Naveed Qamar has said that his department is going to introduce a smart card for special persons, having features of issuance coverage and other benefits.

This smart card will be launched in collaboration with NADRA. He said this while talking to a delegation of FAFEN here in his office on Monday.

Representatives of FAFEN Nosheen Khurrum, other NGOs Sahiba Shah, Jawaid Rais, Bindiya Rana and Deputy Secretary of DEPD Shahzaib Shaikh were also present. They discussed in detail regarding participation of Ttransgender people, women and persons with disabilities in electoral process.

Syed Qasim Naveed Qamar added: “It is a fundamental right of all the persons to cast their votes and it is also the duty of all stakeholders including federal and provincial governments and Election Commission of Pakistan to facilitate them in casting their votes.”

He assured that we were ensuring that in every new building that’s going to be constructed, must have accessibility for special persons and trying to make some changes in already constructed buildings.

He agreed upon that during elections special persons must have easy access to polling stations and they should also engage themselves in political activities.

It was decided in the meeting that Ministers for Works and Education would be reached out to convince them to build special washrooms and ramps for special persons in educational institutions and public sector buildings as well, no new building would be given NOC unless it had easy access facilities for special persons. It was decided in the meeting that no new building would be constructed unless it got NOC from Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities Sindh.

Special Assistant to CM Sindh on Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities Syed Qasim Naveed Qamar said that it was a matter of great pleasure that Sindh was the first province that passed legislation for special persons, adding that we were also working to draft better laws for special persons. He assured them that Sindh government would enhance its cooperation with those who were working to facilitate special persons.—INP