Scheme for Implementation of Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act (SIPDA)

What is SIPDA?

Scheme for Implementation of Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act (SIPDA) is a Central Sector scheme of the Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities (Divyangjan), Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment. SIPDA funds the machinery that makes the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (RPwD) Act, 2016 operational on the ground; ramps and lifts in public buildings, accessible government websites, rehabilitation centres, disability certificate camps and skill training.

The scheme has a long history. The Ministry has been releasing funds for RPwD Act implementation since 1999, and a formal scheme was notified on 28 January 2016, later renamed and reframed around the RPwD Act, 2016, which came into force on 19 April 2017. India's ratification of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities in October 2007 underpins the accessibility obligations SIPDA pays for.

The critical thing to understand before reading further: SIPDA is not a personal benefit scheme. It transfers grant-in-aid to institutions, which then execute the projects themselves. According to the scheme document, activities "shall be implemented and executed by the Implementing Agencies themselves".

Which activities does SIPDA fund?

The scheme document lists 18 categories of assistance. The main ones are:

• Barrier-free environment; ramps, rails, lifts, accessible toilets for wheelchair users, braille signage, auditory signals, tactile flooring, curb cuts, engraving on zebra crossings and railway platform edges, in schools, colleges, training institutes, offices, public buildings, recreational areas and hospitals.
• Accessible government websites at central, state and district level, per the guidelines issued by NIC and the Department of Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances.
• Skill development training for persons with disabilities.
• Accessible India Campaign (Sugamya Bharat Abhiyan), accessibility audits and retrofitting across the built environment, transport and ICT ecosystems.
• Composite Regional Centres (CRCs), Regional Centres, Outreach Centres and District Disability Rehabilitation Centres (DDRCs), including setting up new ones. All components of DDRCs are funded under SIPDA alone.
• Disability certificate camps organised by state governments, and identification, survey and Universal ID (UDID) work.
• Awareness generation and publicity for stakeholders.
• Resource centres for information, counselling and support services.
• Accessible libraries, physical and digital.
• Research on disability-related technology, products and issues.
• Early diagnostic and intervention centres at district headquarters and government medical colleges, so hearing-impaired infants and young children can prepare for regular schooling.
• Infrastructure grants to offices of State Commissioners for Persons with Disabilities.
• Special recreation centres and accessible parks on government or local authority land.
• National and state-level sporting events for persons with disabilities.
• In-service training and sensitisation of key functionaries of central and state governments, local bodies and service providers.
• Incentives to private-sector employers for employing persons with disabilities.
• Consultant costs for preparing Detailed Project Reports for new schemes.

Who is eligible for a SIPDA grant?

These bodies can apply:

• Departments of state governments and Union Territories.
• Autonomous bodies, statutory bodies and PSUs set up by the Centre, a state or a UT, including central and state universities.
• National Institutes, CRCs, DDRCs, Regional Centres and Outreach Centres under the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment.
• Organisations registered under the Societies Registration Act 1860, Indian Trusts Act 1882 or Companies Act 1956.
• Central or state recognised sports bodies and federations.

These cannot apply:

• Individual persons with disabilities and their families cannot apply for a personal benefit under SIPDA. There is no individual entitlement, no beneficiary list and no DBT payment to a person under this scheme. For individual support, see ADIP for aids and appliances, the DEPwD scholarship schemes, the National Fund for Persons with Disabilities, or the UDID card.
• Unregistered groups with no legal status under one of the three statutes.
• Autonomous bodies, universities and NGOs applying directly without routing the proposal through the concerned Central or State government: NGO proposals must be recommended by the state government, and sports federation proposals need the no-objection of the concerned ministry or department.

What must a SIPDA proposal contain?

An organisation seeking assistance forwards a detailed proposal, approved by the head of the institution, to the Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities in New Delhi. The proposal must state:

• Name and details of the organisation or department.
• Details of the proposed project, its need and likely outcome, and the short-term and long-term benefits.
• Number of beneficiaries, where applicable.
• Item-wise expected cost, and whether any recurring cost is involved and how it will be financed.
• Time frame for execution, and location with a detailed architectural map where construction is involved.
• Justification for the proposal, and the proposed method of selecting the executing agency.
• Details of past work done under SIPDA, if any, and its status.
• Monitoring mechanism, approval of the competent authority, and bank account details.

Construction proposals need a preliminary cost estimate signed by an officer not below the rank of Executive Engineer of CPWD or the state PWD. Accessible website proposals need a preliminary cost estimate prepared by NIC or another competent technical agency, listing the website concerned, the accessibility features already present and the additional features proposed.

How to apply for SIPDA grant-in-aid

1. Confirm your organisation falls in one of the five eligible categories listed above, and that the activity is among the 18 listed in the scheme.
2. Prepare the detailed project proposal with item-wise costs, timelines, beneficiary numbers, monitoring mechanism and justification.
3. Attach the preliminary cost estimate, signed by an Executive Engineer-rank officer for construction, or prepared by NIC for website accessibility work.
4. Get the proposal approved by the head of the institution.
5. Route it through the concerned government — autonomous bodies, universities and government-supported organisations send proposals through the relevant Central or State government; NGO proposals must be recommended by the state government; sports body proposals need the concerned ministry's no-objection.
6. Submit the proposal to the Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities (Divyangjan), Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment, New Delhi.
7. The Screening Committee: Joint Secretary (SIPDA) as chair, Joint Secretary and Financial Adviser, Director or Deputy Secretary (SIPDA) and two nominated disability experts, examines the proposal. Sub-schemes with their own screening committee follow that route instead.
8. On sanction, receive the grant in your account, follow the EAT module of the Ministry of Finance (all agencies except state governments), and for NGOs ensure the grant is reflected in PFMS through the ministry's NGO-PS portal linked to NITI Aayog's portal.
9. Execute the project, publish grant details and activities on your organisation's website, and submit the utilisation certificate and project completion report within three months of finishing the work.

How much does SIPDA sanction?

SIPDA does not publish a single benefit ceiling. Grants are project-wise, sized against the cost estimate submitted, and normally released in one instalment, at most two, depending on the nature of the work and its phases. Grants are for non-recurring expenditure, with the exception of CRCs and DDRCs, which also receive recurring grant-in-aid. No committed liability may be created without the approval of the competent authority. Administrative cost is capped at 2% of the annual budget of the scheme.

Conditions attached to a SIPDA grant

• Implementing agencies must follow the General Financial Rules, 2017, codal procedure and CVC guidelines for all contracts and financial transactions.
• Agencies are open to inspection by an officer or third-party agency authorised by the department, the state government, UT administration or a national institute.
• If the government has reason to believe the grant is not being used for the approved purpose, the amount is recovered with penal interest, further assistance stops, and the organisation may be blacklisted and face legal action.
• Agencies must maintain a website prominently displaying the grant received, its purpose, activities carried out and a beneficiary list where applicable.
• Unutilised grant must be refunded. If the project cannot be completed in the stipulated time, the ministry must be informed and an extension sought.

Where to get help with SIPDA

SIPDA is administered by the SIPDA Division of the Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities in New Delhi, and the scheme document, appendices and sub-scheme guidelines are published at depwd.gov.in. Several sub-components have their own detailed appendices; skill development training, the Accessible India Campaign, awareness generation and publicity, disability research, in-service training and sensitisation, the private-sector employment incentive, and DDRC establishment, and applicants should read the relevant appendix before drafting a proposal. No public helpline is published for the scheme.

Related guides on this site: the Accessible India Campaign, the Unique Disability ID (UDID) / Swavlamban card, the ADIP aids and appliances scheme, and the National Fund for Persons with Disabilities.