On this World Disability Day, the world, in general, and Pakistan, in particular, should shun the perception about the people with disabilities (PWDs) that those born with a disability do not have a desire to live a life. No, nada. They do have goals and dreams that somebody non-disabled has. This widespread belief has ruined many lives. Thankfully, the Punjab government’s policies on disabled people and special education have addressed the stigma and put more focus on efforts to mainstream them. These efforts, however, will be realised only with the inclusion and education of the non-disabled people at a mass level as their attitude towards PWDs is the main problem. It has been observed that the families having children with special needs keep them homebound, making them an extra burden on them. Schools fail to address their needs and the teachers, not trained enough on special education, often fail them. As per the World Health Organization data, Pakistan’s 15 percent of the population is of PWDs. According to the Bureau of Statistics Planning and Development Board Government of the Punjab Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey 2017-18, up to 17.9 percent of children ages five to 17 have been living in the province with one or multiple disabilities from profound to mild such as hearing, vision, communication/comprehension, learning, mobility, and emotions. The World Disability Report states that children with disabilities are less likely to start school than their able-bodied peers, and while once at the school, they keep on facing problems also have lower retention and transition rates. The Special Education Policy of Punjab (2019), being unveiled today, has addressed the main concerns of special education. The policy, consisting of three pillar – (a) strengthening the governance and institutional capacity of special education department (b) increasing access of children with special educational needs and disabilities to education and (c) improving quality of special education. The policy’s focus is on the integration of children with mild to moderate disabilities as “an estimated 27% of PWDs will be incorporated in mainstream public schools as a result of this policy.” If this is delivered, this will be a leading example for other provinces too. PWDs’ inclusion into mainstream schools will give them access to mainstream public life. This will be a learning experience for teachers as well as students to be aware of the needs of the people with special needs. The integration of PWDs at the school level will help society and the government enforce transport and building bylaws for PWDs. These measures are likely to make PWDs’ lives more independent. In fact, they need more independence and empowerment and not pity. *