Assistance to Disabled Persons for Purchase/Fitting of Aids and Appliances (NIEPVD Dehradun)

What is the Assistance to Disabled Persons for Aids and Appliances scheme?

Assistance to Disabled Persons for Purchase/Fitting of Aids and Appliances; widely known as the ADIP scheme; provides persons with disabilities free or subsidised assistive devices through the National Institute for the Empowerment of Persons with Visual Disabilities (NIEPVD), Dehradun, Uttarakhand.

According to the Uttarakhand government scheme compendium and the myScheme listing, ADIP at NIEPVD Dehradun supplies durable, standard-quality aids that improve a person's independence, mobility, learning or communication. The device is matched to the person's disability after a proper assessment, so a visually impaired student, a person with a hearing loss and a person with a locomotor disability each receive different, appropriate equipment.

The scheme covers the cost of the device itself and, where relevant, its fitting. It is aimed at making assistive technology affordable for families who could not otherwise buy it.

ADIP is a central scheme of the Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities (DEPwD) that has run since 1981, and NIEPVD Dehradun is one of the national institutes that implements it on the ground alongside agencies such as ALIMCO, District Disability Rehabilitation Centres and empanelled NGOs. According to DEPwD, aids and appliances are provided free where the beneficiary's monthly income is up to Rs 22,500, and at 50 per cent cost where income is between Rs 22,501 and Rs 30,000. A valid disability certificate showing at least 40 per cent disability is required, and, where a doctor advises it, a corrective surgery may be carried out before the device is fitted so that the aid works as intended.

Which devices does ADIP provide?

The device depends on the type of disability:

• Visual disability: Braille kit, Daisy player, refractive glasses, mobility cane and smartphone.
• Hearing disability: hearing aids.
• Locomotor (physical) disability: wheelchair, tricycle, walking sticks, calipers and crutches.
• Intellectual disability: MR (mentally retarded) kit.

Visually disabled children up to 12 years of age can apply for a free Braille kit every year, because a growing child's learning needs change from year to year.

Who is eligible for a device, and who is not?

You can apply if:

• You are a person with a disability, visual, hearing, locomotor or intellectual, with a valid disability certificate.
• Your family income is within the ADIP ceiling described below.
• You have not received the same device within the fixed waiting period.

Income decides the concession:

• If the parent's or guardian's income is up to Rs 22,500 a month, the device is given completely free.
• If the income is between Rs 22,501 and Rs 30,000 a month, the beneficiary pays 50 per cent of the device cost.

You cannot apply / are not eligible if:

• Your family income is above Rs 30,000 a month, the ADIP concession does not apply.
• You cannot produce a valid disability certificate, which is mandatory for assessment.
• You are asking for a device again before the waiting period ends: except a smartphone, other devices for visually disabled children can be re-applied for only after a gap of at least 3 years, and a smartphone only after 5 years.

What documents are required?

How to apply for the ADIP scheme at NIEPVD Dehradun

The scheme is applied for offline at the institute.

1. Visit the National Institute for the Empowerment of Persons with Visual Disabilities (NIEPVD), Dehradun, or contact its Cross Disability Early Intervention Centre to obtain the ADIP application form.
2. Fill in the form and attach the required documents — disability certificate, UDID or Aadhaar, income certificate and medical certificate.
3. Submit the form at NIEPVD Dehradun and appear for the disability and document verification (assessment), where the correct device is decided.
4. Once the assessment formality is complete, collect the assistive device; families in the Rs 22,501–30,000 income band pay 50 per cent of the cost at this stage.

Can I apply online through the ARJUN portal?

Alongside the offline route at NIEPVD Dehradun, DEPwD now runs a national online system for ADIP called ARJUN (ADIP & RVY Joint Interface for Unique Nomination) at adip.depwd.gov.in, where a person with a disability can register, enter their UDID and income details and be nominated for a device through an implementing agency. In practice, for a beneficiary in Uttarakhand the assessment, fitting and distribution still happen through NIEPVD Dehradun or a camp it organises, so the institute remains the point of contact even if the nomination is recorded online. If you are unsure which route to use, contact NIEPVD Dehradun first and follow the process it advises for your area.

How are devices given after assessment?

Assistance to Disabled Persons for Aids and Appliances links the device to a proper assessment. After you apply, the department conducts a Disability & Assessment Verification: checking the disability certificate, documents and the person's actual requirement. Devices are provided to beneficiaries soon after this formality is completed, so keeping your documents complete speeds up the process.

Why applications get delayed or rejected

• Income above Rs 30,000 a month. The concession does not apply.
• Missing or invalid disability certificate. The single most common reason an assessment cannot proceed.
• Re-applying too early, a device received earlier cannot be claimed again before the 3-year (or 5-year, for smartphones) waiting period.
• Incomplete income proof; without it, the department cannot decide whether the device is free or half-cost.

Fixing the document that is missing and re-submitting at the institute is usually enough to restart the assessment.

Key facts to remember

• Devices are free if the parent's or guardian's income is up to Rs 22,500 a month, and half-cost between Rs 22,501 and Rs 30,000.
• A valid disability certificate showing at least 40 per cent disability is mandatory.
• Visually disabled children up to 12 years can get a free Braille kit every year; other devices can be re-applied for only after 3 years, and a smartphone after 5 years.
• ADIP is a central scheme running since 1981, implemented in Uttarakhand through NIEPVD Dehradun.
• The device is matched to the disability after a proper assessment, and a corrective surgery may precede the fitting where a doctor advises it.

Where to get help

• NIEPVD Dehradun telephone: 0135-2744491
• Cross Disability Early Intervention Centre reception: 9412056597
• Website: niepvd.nic.in
• National ADIP / ARJUN portal: adip.depwd.gov.in

If a device is delayed after the assessment, follow up with NIEPVD Dehradun quoting your assessment date; the institute organises distribution directly or through camps, so keeping your documents complete and your contact number current is the surest way to be reached when the device is ready.

The mobility cane, Daisy player and other standard devices under ADIP are given free within the income ceiling, so no beneficiary should be asked to pay an agent to "arrange" a device.