Many blind and visually impaired people in the country depend on government welfare schemes and provisions to manage their lives. With Covid-19, livelihood options shrunk for a majority of the blind population, working in the informal sector as hawkers or daily wagers. Many of them now completely rely on the government social security schemes for their sustenance.

40-year-old, visually impaired Jankiram Lande from Parbhani district of Maharashtra is a regular Eyeway caller. He primarily got in touch with the Eyeway Helpdesk seeking assistance to avail the Antyodaya Anna Yojana. This is a Government of India sponsored scheme under which food grains upto 35 kilograms are provided to poor families, including people with disabilities, every month at a subsidized rate.
 
Jankiram was one among the many unfortunate workers who lost their source of income during the Covid-19 lockdown. He was counting on the ration under Antyodaya Anna Yojana to help him keep afloat, at least till he found work once again.  However, he was in for a rude shock when the concerned authority at his district Tehsil office flatly refused to give him the subsidized food grains. Even after furnishing the court order and an application shared by Eyeway, they refused to consider his request. The officials upfront denied having any orders to implement such a scheme. This is when the Eyeway Helpdesk counselor in Maharashtra took matters in her hands and started speaking with the Tehsil officials, demanding an explanation for their refusal. After much persistence, the officials agreed to Jankiram's request and asked him to submit an application on behalf of other disabled people also who hailed from the low income families. Things still didn’t move forward swiftly.
The Eyeway Helpdesk then guided Jankiram to approach the District Collector’s office with his case. He was heard, and as a result, a letter was issued right away to the Tehsil office to offer assistance immediately. This not only helped Jankiram avail the scheme benefits but also the other 200 persons with disabilities, whom he had represented through his application.
Eyeway salutes people like Jankiram who stand up for their rights and for the rights of others. While government welfare schemes are meant to serve the underserved, their faulty execution makes it difficult and often a long process to follow.