There
are many talented, capable people who are physically disabled, and the chances
of their getting a job are abysmal.

Equal Access hopes to change that. The project, launched by the National
Center for Promotion of Employment for Disabled People (NCPEDP) and Dataquest
publishers Cyber Media, has made a start with sensitizing employers to the issue–and
to the talent they are missing out on when they turn a blind eye to the
disabled.

The first Equal Access steps were two high-profile round-table meetings in
Delhi and Bangalore, involving the chief ministers and top infotech CEOs. The
New Delhi meeting in September 2000 included CM Sheila Dixit, and the Bangalore
breakfast meeting in January 2001 was at chief minister SM Krishna’s house.
CEOs of leading IT companies got together to discuss the issue of creating equal
opportunities for the handicapped.

What emerged from these conferences was that the IT industry could provide
ample employment opportunities for the disabled: about a fifth of the jobs are
not impeded by most physical disabilities. Companies need more
disability-friendly policies and the office environment needs to be sensitized
to the issue.

The project’s next step is a web site run by Cyber Media. The Equal Access
site, www.cioljobs.com/equalaccess,
provides a platform for the disabled to be employed by the IT industry. It lists
jobs opportunities for the disabled, at no charge to employee or employer. It
also lists links to aid organizations, guidelines and resources, and other IT
media coverage of the disability issue.

Mala Bhargava, Computers@Home’s executive editor who has been actively
involved in the project points, says it’s important to understand that the
project is about equal opportunity and unused talent, and not about charity.
“Equal Access is not about throwing a few crumbs off society’s bountiful
tables to the less privileged,” she says. “It’s about tapping a
wealth of existing talent.”

Meghna Sharma in New Delhi