Disability Perspectives: Empowerment and Capacity Utilisation in Kerala

Abstract

The study examines disability in Kerala through the dual lenses of empowerment and capacity utilisation, combining theoretical frameworks from the Social Model of Disability and Amartya Sen’s Capability Approach with empirical evidence from the Census of India (2011), the NSS 76th Round (2018), and the Kerala Disability Census (2015). Using a quantitative-descriptive design, the study documents the paradoxical nature of Kerala’s disability profile: higher survival and reporting of disabilities alongside persistently poor economic and educational outcomes for persons with disabilities (PWDs). Key findings show that Kerala records a marginally higher disability prevalence than the national average, a distinctive category mix (notably higher shares of locomotor, mental illness, and multiple disabilities), a high dropout rate (43%) in education, and extremely low employment participation (over 80% non-employment). District-level analysis reveals modest spatial variation but uniformly weak labour-market absorption and concentrated household burdens. Policy review indicates progressive legislation (RPwD Act, 2016; Kerala Rules, 2020) and numerous welfare schemes, yet implementation gaps, an emphasis on palliative transfers, and inadequate workplace accommodations impede the transition from protection to participation. The study argues for a reorientation from welfare-based responses toward rights- and capability-enhancing strategies, inclusive infrastructure, enforceable employment provisions, skill-to-job linkages, and district-tailored interventionsto convert Kerala’s human capital into meaningful social and economic participation.