Early Intervention Programme: APD’s pioneering work for Children with Special Needs (CWSN) in the age group 0 to 8 yrs has been accredited as the best replicable model and was appointed as the State Nodal Agency Centre for Karnataka for the programs/schemes under the National Trust Act to implement DISHA schemes across Karnataka.  APD’s Inclusive Education model for CWSN’s was assessed by the Education Dept of the Government of Karnataka, based on the “Inclusive Education Assessment Format” for Children with Special Needs and recommended for use in all government schools in the state. Community Mental Health Programme (CMHP) initiated as far back as 2004, based on the CBR model, covered 19041 persons with mental illness (PWMIs). APD’s contribution to national policies on mental health led to the enactment of legislation focusing on the rehabilitation model, a paradigm shift from the medical model; Spinal Cord Injury Programme(SCIR): is the only program with an Institutional and Community based delivery model along with a transdisciplinary social model that reached 3300 beneficiaries. APD’s work on Employer-led Training (ELT) on Livelihood courses for Youth with Disability (YwD) has devised industry-tailored training programs that have a sector-leading 92% placement rate for its graduates.

APD has collaborated with Central Government to run Rehabilitation Council of India and Tata Institute of Social Sciences certified courses to address the acute shortage of skilled, certified manpower for the disability sector through its Institute of Disability for Rehabilitation and Research (IDRR). APD works extensively with State governments in building capacities of their frontline workers, utilization of budgetary allocation, and facilitating the implementation of govt. schemes at the grass root level.

APD, India is an NGO that’s transforming the lives of underprivileged people with disabilities since 1959. Based in Bengaluru, Karnataka, we run extensive programs in rural and urban Karnataka to enable, equip and empower children and adults with a range of disabilities including locomotor, spinal cord injury, speech and hearing, cerebral palsy, and to some extent, mental issues. To date, we have impacted 500,000+ lives of people with disabilities.