Shimla, April 8: Demanding the appointment of individuals with visual disabilities to long-vacant government posts, members of the Himachal Pradesh Visually Impaired Association blocked the road outside the state secretariat in Shimla on Monday.
The protest marks a new phase in their agitation, which has continued for 535 days near the Kalibari Temple. According to the association, more than 1,100 posts reserved for persons with visual disabilities remain vacant across various departments.
“We are only asking for our constitutional right,” said Rajesh Thakur, the association’s state secretary. “Over 1,100 posts are vacant. The government continues to ignore us.”
Thakur noted that multiple meetings had been held with the chief minister, chief secretary, and social justice and empowerment minister over the past year and a half. “None of these meetings brought any concrete outcomes,” he said.
The association said the road blockade will not end until Social Justice and Empowerment Minister Dhani Ram Shandil either meets the protesters or announces a clear plan of action. “Until Minister Shandil meets us or declares an action plan, we won’t move,” Thakur said.
