BUDGAM: The District Legal Services Authority (DLSA), Budgam, under the aegis of the J&K Legal Services Authority, organized an awareness programme on the Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens (MWPSC) Act, 2007, and the NALSA (Legal Services to Persons with Mental Illness and Persons with Intellectual Disabilities) Scheme, 2024 (LSUM), in collaboration with the Islamic Educational Institute, Lolipora Chadoora.
The event was held under the leadership of Chief Justice of the High Court of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh and Patron-in-Chief, J&K Legal Services Authority, Justice Arun Palli, and Executive Chairman, J&K Legal Services Authority, Justice Sanjeev Kumar.
The programme was conducted under the directions of Member Secretary, J&K Legal Services Authority, Shazia Tabassum, supervised by Chairman, DLSA Budgam, O.P. Bhagat, and guided by Secretary, DLSA Budgam, Nusrat Ali Hakak,
The primary objective of the programme was to spread awareness regarding the legal mechanisms ensuring the maintenance and welfare of parents and senior citizens, and to provide legal support to persons with mental illness and intellectual disabilities.
Deputy LADC and Assistant LADC were deputed by DLSA Budgam as resource persons for the programme. They delivered detailed presentations on relevant legal provisions and sensitized participants about their significance and implementation.
Deputy Legal Aid Defence Counsel, Budgam, explained the provisions of the Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens Act, 2007. He emphasized that the Act ensures elderly persons can live with dignity by legally obligating children and relatives to provide for their maintenance. He highlighted the role of Maintenance Tribunals in expeditiously adjudicating such claims and elaborated on the protection offered to senior citizens against property transfers made on the condition of care, which become void if the condition is violated.
Legal Aid Defence Counsel, Budgam, addressed the gathering on the NALSA Scheme, 2024. He explained that the scheme is designed to provide comprehensive legal assistance to individuals with mental illness and intellectual disabilities. He informed participants about the establishment of dedicated Legal Services Units (LSUM), specialized panels of lawyers and volunteers, the availability of services at courts, prisons, and police stations, and ongoing efforts to ensure disabled-friendly infrastructure within the justice delivery system.