Lok Sabha Question No. 114 (STARRED), answered on 2020-02-10
Subject: Education for Differently Abled Students
Ministry: HUMAN RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT
Asked by: Supriya Sadanand Sule, Shriniwas Dadasaheb Patil

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF HUMAN RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT OF SCHOOL EDUCATION & LITERACY

## LOK SABHA STARRED QUESTION NO. 114 TO BE ANSWERED ON 10.02.2020

## Education for Differently Abled Students

- *114.   SHRIMATI SUPRIYA SULE: SHRI SHRINIWAS PATIL: Will the Minister of HUMAN RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT be pleased to state: (a)  whether  it  is  a  fact  that  after  implementation  of  the  Right  to Education  (RTE)  Act,  the differently  abled  students  in schools  across  the  country  still  have serious  infrastructure and pedagogy problems and if so, the details thereof and the reasons therefor; (b)  whether  in  many  schools,  majority  of  teachers  are  also  not  trained  to  understand  the special needs of such students; (c) if so, the steps taken/being taken by the Government to address the issues being faced by the  differently  abled  children  in  schools  including  promoting  and  facilitating  inclusive education and skill development of differently abled students; (d) the details of funds allocated, sanctioned and utilized during the last five years, State/UT and year-wise; and (e) the other steps taken by the Government for the betterment of differently abled students in
- the country?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER OF HUMAN RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT (SHRI RAMESH POKHRIYAL 'NISHANK')

(a) to (e) : A statement is laid on the table of the House.

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STATEMENT REFERRED TO IN REPLY (A) TO (E) OF LOK SABHA STARRED QUESTION  NO.  *114  FOR  ANSWER  ON  10.02.2020  ASKED  BY  SHRIMATI SUPRIYA SULE & SHRI  SHRINIWAS PATIL, HON'BLE MEMBRES  OF PARLIAMENT REGARDING 'EDUCATION FOR DIFFERENTLY ABLED STUDENTS '

(a) With the Right to Education Act, coming into force continues effort is being made to address  the  infrastructure  and  pedagogical  requirements  of  children  with  special  needs (CwSN)  in  schools  across  the  country.  In  the  year  2018-19  the  Department  of  School Education & Literacy, MHRD launched Samagra Shiksha an Integrated Scheme for School Education which covers Children with Special Needs (CwSNs) with one or more disabilities as  mentioned  in  the  schedule  of  disabilities  as  provided  in  the  Rights  of  Persons  with Disabilities (RPwD) Act, 2016, studying in Govt., Govt. aided and local body schools. Under Samagra Shiksha Infrastructure and Pedagogy issues have been overcome to a great extent. With  regard  to removal  of  infrastructure  barriers in schools,  out  of total  11,68,292 Governments and Government Aided schools, 8,33,703 schools have barrier free access for differently-abled  children  (UDISE+  2018-19  provisional).  Similarly,  the  curriculum  and textbooks  have  been  adapted  to  ensure  accessibility  and  teachers  have  been  sensitised  to transact the same in an inclusive environment.

(b) To provide quality  education  to  differently-abled  students,  as  per  UDISE+  2018-19 (Provisional) 4,24,285 general teachers have been provided training in addressing the needs of differently-abled students. Training of general teachers is a continuous process. Apart from the above, 28,285 dedicated Special Educators and Resource Persons have been recruited by the States and UTs for addressing the scholastic and co-scholastic needs of differently-abled students in Government and Government Aided schools.

In addition to the above, the Department has launched National Initiative for School Heads'  and  Teachers'  Holistic  Advancement  (NISHTHA).  It  aims  to  build  competencies among  all  teachers  and  school  principals  in  all  States  and  UTs  at  the  elementary  stage, including curriculum, learner centred pedagogy and learning outcomes of inclusive education.

Further, NCERT  has  developed  curricular  and  resource  materials  for  students, teachers and other stakeholders for promoting inclusive education.

(c) Department of School Education & Literacy under Samagra Shiksha Scheme provides facilities  for  all  children  with  disabilities  Government and Government Aided schools. The Scheme includes assistance for two kinds of components:

## (i) Student oriented components

Assistance  is  provided  to  States  and  Union  Territories  @  Rs. 3500/- per  CwSN,  including CwSN attending school and those who cannot attend school due to severe disability (home based  education).  The  amount  of  Rs.3500/-  per  annum  per  CwSN  is  utilized  for  specified items like

- (a) Identification and assessment of children with disabilities.
- (b) Provision of aids and appliances, medical services, diagnostic services etc.
- (c) Access  to  and  development  of  teaching  learning  material  as  per  his/her requirement etc.
- (d) Provision of facilities like transport/escort facilities, hostel facilities, scholarship, assistive devices, support staff (readers, amanuensis) etc.
- (e) Provision of large print text book, Braille books and uniform allowances.
- (f) Stipend for Girl  Students  @  Rs. 200 per  month  for 10  months  to encourage their participation in the school system.
- (g) Access to technology (ICT) for the disabled as it increases their access to a vast amount of information not otherwise available.
- (h) Awareness and motivation camps
- (ii) Resource support

For  providing  resource  support  to  CwSN,  special  educators  are  appointed  under Samagra Shiksha.  All educators are registered with Rehabilitation Council of India (RCI). These educators are mandatorily available for all CwSN with high support needs as well. The educators are posted at the block or cluster level as per the requirement and operate in an itinerant mode, covering a group of schools where children with special needs are enrolled.

- (d) The details of funds allocated/sanctioned and utilized by the States and UTs in the last five years is annexed.
- (e) The  other  steps  taken  by  the  government  for  the  betterment  of  differently-abled students in the country are as follows:-
- (i) CBSE  has  made  provision for differently-abled students for exemptions/ concessions for both class X & XII board exam such as facility of scribe and compensatory  time  during exams,  designating a few selected schools as examination  centers  to  facilitate  access  for  special  students,  use  of  portable video magnifier by Visually Impaired candidate, no registration and examination fee for classes IX, X, XI, XII is not charged from visually impaired candidates and flexibility in choosing subjects.
- (ii) The Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities implements the Deendayal  Disabled  Rehabilitation  Scheme  (DDRS)  under  which  financial assistant is provided to NGOs for various projects including special schools for intellectual,  hearing  &  speech  and  visual  disabilities.  Around  350  Special Schools are assisted under DDRS every year.
- (iii) The  Department  of  Empowerment  of  Persons  with  Disabilities  implements  5 scholarship  Schemes  namely:  Pre-matric,  Post-matric,  Top  Class,  National Scholarship and National Overseas Scholarship for differently-abled students.
- (iv) The  Department  of  Empowerment  of  Persons  with  Disabilities  also  provides free coaching for differently-abled students for engineering and medical institutes, professional courses and for Central and State Civil Services.
- (v) University  Grant  Commission  (UGC)  under  Ministry  of  Human  Resource Development also implements the scheme of National Fellowship for differently-abled students.

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