Mizoram government has been pulled up in a report of state legislative's Public Accounts Committee for not having set up a special employment exchange cell to cater to disabled persons for government jobs. The committee has also pointed out that of the three sub-committees that were supposed to submit recommendations for reserving three per cent of jobs for disabled as insisted by the Centre, only one sub-committee for hearing aids has submitted its recommendations while the other two--visual impairment and locomotor disabilities sub-committees-- were yet to submit their recommendations even after two years.

The PAC's report also said the Centre's share for setting up three special employment exchange cells for the disabled in the
state, an amount of Rs 15.21 lakh, has been lying unutilised since 2001 because of lack of funds by the state government to contribute its own share of Rs 3.80 lakh. In its observations and recommendations, the report said the committee is deeply concerned ''over the failure of the the Social Welfare Department and also of various other departments for not making reservation of at least three per cent vacancies among all cadres for persons with disabilities''. It said the non-submission of recommendations by the visual impairment and locomotor disabilities sub-committees showed lack of sincerity and devotion to duty.  It recommended that the state government reconstitute these sub-committees comprising more efficient and dutiful officials and members.

The report also hauled up the Department of Personnel and Administrative Reforms for not ensuring that action was taken to
implement the instructions given through the Disabilities Act 1995 for various departments to make three per cent vacancies available for the disabled. It recommended that the state government give priority to this.

The PAC also recommended that if financial difficulty was the roadblock for creating special employment cells, then the state
government should utilise the money already on hand, that is Rs 15.21 lakh given by the Centre, to set up these cells in existing
state employment exhanges.

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