Disabled children too will get right to free education

Updated on: Thursday, May 10, 2012

The government said that children with all kinds of disability will be provided free and compulsory education, either in school or at home, under the Right to Education Act.

"Children with all kinds of disability will be protected under the Act," HRD Minister Kapil Sibal said, moving amendments to the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009 in the Lok Sabha.

The amendment bill, which was earlier approved by the Rajya Sabha, seeks to widen the beneficiary net for disabled children under the Act and provide those with severe disability the option of receiving education at home.

Sibal said that under the Act children suffering from all kinds of disabilities including autism, cerebral palsy and mental retardation would be provided free and compulsory education.

He said diseases like dyslexia which are not specifically mentioned in the Bill would be covered once the changes, which are being considered by the government, are made in the legislations dealing with disabilities.

On the demand of minorities for making explicit reference to provisions of Articles 29 and 30 dealing with rights of minorities, Sibal said it was not needed as Constitution is supreme and everything flows from it.

He said the Supreme Court in a recent judgement has made it clear that the Right to Education Act would not apply to unaided minority institutions. It would also not apply to Vedic Pathshalas and Muslim Madarsas.

Kirit Solanki (BJP), however, demanded that all religious educational institutions should be brought within the ambit of the Right to Education Act.

Sibal sought support of state governments, NGOs and all stakeholders to provide free and compulsory education to children under the Right to Education Act.

"It is responsibility of all civil society, state governments and parents to ensure that all children go to school," he said, adding these changes were being incorporated after representations were received by the NGOs.

He said while efforts would be made to provide free education to differently abled children in the same classrooms, a provision has been made for home education for those who are not able to attend regular school.

The government would ensure that the provisions were not misused to keep differently abled children out of the school, he said.

Initiating the discussion, Solanki regretted that the country has not been able to provide free and compulsory education 60 years after Independence, although the Constitution wanted it to be done within a decade.

He wanted the government to create an atmosphere where children of rich and poor could study together.

Supporting the Bill, Lalu Prasad (RJD) said the government should first conduct a survey to assess infrastructure requirement for implementation of the legislation.

He demanded special provision for education of Muslim girls under the Right to Education Act.

Regretting that there was lot of corruption in the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA), Prasad suggested that Mid-Day Meal scheme should be modified and government should provide cash to families instead of food to children.

K Suresh (Cong) demanded specialised teachers to take care of students with different ability.

Shailendra Kumar (SP), Baliram (BSP), P K Biju (CPM), Davidson J Helen (DMK), Meena Singh (JD-U) and Ratna De (TMC) also spoke.

B Mahtab (BJD) said there was an urgent need to set up special training institutes to train students with disability.

He said the Centre and the states should implement the Act together.

Both Supriya Sule (NCP) and Priya Dutt (Cong) raised doubt over a provision on providing home education to children with severe disability.

Sule said for inclusive education, such children will have to go to school and for that parents will have to walk an extra mile.

Dutt said only the influential can afford to get their children educated at home and by keeping a child at home would mean locking him up. "We will be back to square one," she said.

Rattan Singh Ajnala (SAD) wanted to know how a child of a poor man will get education at home.

Prabodh Panda (CPI) wondered how children with special needs will get education when no infrastructure is in place.

Disabled children too will get right to free education

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