The Indian food industry is poised for huge growth, increasing its contribution to world food trade every year. In India, the food sector has emerged as a high-growth and high-profit sector due to its immense potential for value addition, particularly within the food processing industry.Enhancing employment opportunities for people with disabilities is one of the main concerns of the disability sector in India. ASSOCHAM organised a national conference at Chandigarh today on "Sustainable Development of Persons with Disabilities through Food Processing Industries" at Hotel Shivalikview, Chandigarh.
Shri Ashok Khanna, Chairman, State Coordination Committee, ASSOCHAM in his welcome address said that the Food Processing industry in India has the potential to contribute to the country’s agricultural growth and employment, alleviate rural poverty, guarantee food and nutritional security and contain food inflation.
It is widely accepted that the food processing sector is the most appropriate sector for creating jobs for rural poor, and thus reduce the burden on agricultural sector for creation of their livelihood. He further said that improving vocational training and employment opportunities for people with disability is a critical element for enhancing the quality of life for individuals with disability, their families, but there are also substantial gains for the broader economy.
Smt Rama Chari, Director, Diversity and Equal Opportunity Centre (DEOC) said that enhancing employment opportunities for people with disabilities is one of the main concerns of the disability sector in India. There is growing evidence that people with disabilities comprise between 4 and 10 percent of the Indian population (around 40-90 million individuals). The slow progress in expanding opportunities for disabled people in India results in substantial losses to people with disabilities themselves, and to the society and economy at large in terms of under-developed human capital, loss of output from productive disabled people, and impacts on households and communities.
Dr. Kamlesh Kumar Pandey, Chief Commissioner for Persons with Disabilities, Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment Government of India in his address he said that one may hardly find any job or assignment that cannot be performed by the persons with disabilities. If given the proper environment, majority of them can be made economically productive and useful citizens. But as things stand today, the situation is quite precarious in both developed and developing countries, where working age persons with disabilities experience significantly lower employment rates and much higher unemployment rates than in case of persons without disabilities.He proposed that there should be coherence in the policy outlook of the government as there multiple ministries and bodies are involved.
Shri S K Gulati, IAS, Additional Chief Secretary , Department of Social Justice and Empowerment, Government of Haryana, in his address he said that according to the Census 2011, there are 26 crores person with disability in India. This includes persons with visual impairment, 2 hearing impairment, speech impairment, locomotors impairment and mental disabilities.
He also added that the earlier emphasis on medical rehabilitation has now been replaced by an emphasis on social rehabilitation with right based approach. There has been an increasing recognition of abilities of persons with disabilities and emphasis on mainstreaming them in the society based on their capabilities. People with disabilities constitute a huge talent pool.
He further added that Food Processing Industry (FPI) is traditionally dominated by unorganized players while entry of multi-national companies is driving the growth of organized segment in the industry. Industry growth along with demand for quality standards and technology adoption in manufacturing are driving the need for fresh skilling and up-skilling in the sector.
Dr P M Ghole, Chief General Manager, NABARD- Punjab in his special address said that optimum opportunities must be provided so as to galvanize the potentials and capabilities of the persons with disabilities in food processing industries. Accordingly, a number of schemes/ plans formulated by the Government of India are being implemented for instituting and modernizing food processing units, creation of infrastructure, research and development and human resource development,' apart from other promotional measures aimed at expanding the processed food sector. Ironically, there is abysmally lack of awareness or dissemination of information among the persons with disabilities and their careers about the avenues of their engagement in food processing related activities as a sustainable source of livelihood.
Other speakers who addressed the Conference included Dr J S Saini, Professor & Dean (Consultancy), National Institute of Technical Teachers Training and Research (NITTTR), Dr. Hemant Singh Keshwal, Coordinator, Government Rehabilitation Institute For Intellectual Disabilities, Shri R C Dhara, Consultant, Department of Industries and Commerce, Govt of Haryana, Smt Shabina Bano, Deputy Program Manager, The Hans Foundation, Shri Rajesh Jain, Deputy Zonal General Manager, NSIC- Ludhiana, GoI, Dr P M Ghole, Chief General Manager, NABARD- Punjab, Shri Paramjit Singh ,Principal Director, Regional Centre for Entrepreneurship Development – RCED, Shri Gunpreet Singh, Director, Shl Agro Food Inc, Shri Bhavneshwar Sharma, State Head, Helpage India- Chandigarh, Shri Sanjay Nigam, Assistant Director, Department of Food Processing Industries, MSME Development Institute, Karnal, Ministry of MSME, Govt of India, Shri Arun Sharma, Project Manager, Sarthak Educational Trust and Smt Thilakam Rajendran, Director, ATPAR.
