The Army's South Western Command will mark 2018 as the "year of war disabled" by reaching out to such soldiers and taking their needs to a logical conclusion. Army commander Lieutenant General Cherish Mathson today unveiled the plan in the South Western Command under him and said that the focus on disabled soldiers will be increased. "We will take up activities and travel an extra mile with increased focus to reach out to them," Mathson told reporters. "There are some veterans of World War II who are still alive and they as well as others disabled soldiers will be reached out to.
They will be provided mobility aids," he said. The Command is organising an ex-servicemen rally in Rohtak in Haryana on Sunday, which is likely to be attended by almost 10,000 ex-servicemen, including many disabled veterans. "Mobility equipments, like wheelchairs and other aids, will be provided to them," he said. Similar events would be conducted in Rajasthan's Hanumangarh in March and later in Jaipur and other places in coming months. Defence spokesperson Lt Col Manish Ojha said that such rallies would be conducted every month and with special emphasis on the rehabilitation and welfare of ex-servicemen. "These rallies will act as a platform to interact with the disabled ex-servicemen and allow the defence agencies to re-dedicatethemselves for their help, Ojha added. The Army commander also informed that all the buildings in the command will be made disabled-friendly where ramps will be made for the convenience of disabled people. The Command has also planned 'Satatmilaap' initiative under which various teams are contacting every disabled soldier individually and registering their grievances. Dedicated agencies would take up the soldiers' complaints and solve their problems. These agencies will also help civilians who suffered disability due to any Army action, like in firing ranges, according to defence spokesperson Lt Col Manish Ojha. There are over 5,000 disabled soldiers in the entire area of the south western command with over 2,000 in Rajasthan alone. The Army commander said that a large number of soldiers get disabled while serving in Siachen's inclement weather. "There are soldiers who have their limbs totally gone or brain affected and so on," he said. Army Chief General Bipin Rawat had declared 2018 as the "year of war disabled" last year.
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