Association of visually impaired people holds protest in Shimla over various demands

Shimla, Oct 22 (PTI) The Himachal Blind Persons Association held a 'chakka jam' near the Himachal Pradesh Secretariat here on Tuesday in protest against the non-fulfilment of their demand of filling the backlog in government jobs for visually impaired people.

The protesters blocked the Sanjauli-Chotta Shimla road for about 30 minutes. There was also a minor scuffle between them and police personnel.

"We have been demanding for the filling of backlog posts for blind people for 362 days," member of the association Rajesh Thakur said.

He said three to four meetings were held with authorities but no solution has come out.

"Only Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu and Health and Family Welfare Minister Dhani Ram Shandil can answer why our demands are not being accepted," Thakur added.

The members of the association also warned that they came prepared with warm clothes and blankets, and would not leave the spot unless their demands were met and the government gave a written assurance.

Alleging that some police personnel threatened them, Thakur said the chief minister and police would be responsible if anything happened to the protesters in the night.

The association have also been demanding that the government should provide them with reservation and promotions as promised in a notification issued in 2021 and also extend the retirement age of all specially abled persons to 60 years. PTI BPL IJT IJT