NHRC, India Image 7.1: Session 1 of the Meeting of the Core Group on Health and Mental Health on 22 December 2021 7.22 Important recommendations that emerged out of Session 1 of the meeting of the core group on health and mental health are: • The 99 law providing for discrimination of leprosy affected persons need to be amended or repealed in a time bound manner to end discrimination of leprosy affected persons. • A law to provide for substitution of derogatory terms used to describe persons affected by leprosy, right of the person affected by leprosy to access health care facilities for the treatment of leprosy and associated complications, confidentiality of their medical and other records, security of tenure, title and ownership of property, right to access and enjoy public goods and services, including public transport services, right to employment, freedom to form family and right of access to education needs to be enacted. Such law may also provide for separate parameters for assessing the disability quotient for leprosy affected persons for the purpose of issuing disability certificates. • Awareness programmes by involving print and electronic media, grassroot level functionaries and civil society organisations need to be launched to create awareness among the public that leprosy is fully curable and a person suffering from leprosy no longer remains contagious after receipt of first dose of MDT and may lead a normal married life, can have children, can take part in social events and go to work or school/college as normal. • Special fact-finding surveys among the persons affected by leprosy (those still suffering from the diseases as well as fully cured) need to be undertaken to identify issues related to stigma, discrimination and violation of human rights. Periodic surveys need to be undertaken ANNUAL REPORT 68 2021-22