‘Purple Fest 2023, Celebrating Diversity’ is all set to begin on January 6th and will go on till 8th, at the Entertainment Society of Goa, Panaji. The event has been be jointly-organised by Office of the State Commissioner for Persons with Disabilities, Goa in collaboration with the Directorate of Social Welfare and Entertainment Society of Goa.
The event brochure which is a guide to various activities and locations was released at the hands of Minister for Social Welfare, Subhash Phaldesai. The brochure has been specially put together to mark the first edition of Purple Fest 2023.
Minister for Social Welfare, Subhash Phaldessai, said: “Welcome all the delegates for this uniquely conceptualised Purple Fest that celebrates diversity. Persons with Disability need to be brought into the mainstream. Through events and dialogues, we will be able to see a bright future in Goa and across the country. I congratulate the organisers and volunteers for putting together this fest in a short span of time. With the goal of making this event as large as IFFI, we are fully set. All preparations have been completed, and it is now time to get the ball rolling.”
The event is intended to encourage people to overcoming personal stereotypes as well as to establish an environment that not only educates everyone about the disabled community and their capabilities but also respect and celebrates diversity and inclusion.
The festival, which promotes inclusion and engagement of all people on a shared platform, has attracted over 5,000+ delegate registrations, including members of the disabled community and other individuals from all over the country. The event will have 1000 local volunteers to assist the delegates, persons with and without disability and all attendees for all three days.
“Purple Fest is a landmark event for us in Goa. We were looking at 3000 delegates but have crossed the 5000 mark already. With 1000 volunteers, 70 exhibitors and over 60 guest speakers, we hope to find the right path to empowering India here in Goa,” says Commissioner of Persons with Disabilities, Guruprasad Pawaskar.
Jagruti Mela will provide an opportunity to parents, NGOs and other stakeholders to clarify their queries by interacting with the service providers. In Purple Dialogue, the speakers will discuss eight different threads of conversations that are set up with experts and the Purple Ambassadors. The inputs given by the experts will be used to develop essential policies and policy modifications. This will aid advocacy not only in Goa, but also at the national and state levels.
“Every activity planned for Purple Fest has a purpose. The Purple Think Tank sessions are meant to create dialogue among various stakeholders, to empower persons with disability. The sports events celebrate the spirit of competition and also conveys the need to organise such para games and activities thereby creating more opportunities for persons with disability. With over 90 events being held across these days, we hope to sensitise society and look for right collaborations in the future,” says Taha Haaziq, Secretary, Office of the State Commissioner for Persons with Disabilities.
