• Many normal tasks by most schoolchildren are difficult for children with disability/disabilities (CWD) due to the higher care needed to complete the actions.
• These actions become tougher in schools as they do not have accessible spaces and other guiding infrastructure to get there safely.
• Nearly 240 million children in the world today have some form of disability.
• According to UNESCO, India is home to 8 million children with disabilities.
• 45% of them fail to attain literacy.

Issues with CWD education system

• Physical, institutional, socioeconomic and communication barriers from an early age.
• More than 70% of five-year-olds with disabilities in India have never attended any educational institution.
• Many CWD tends to drop out of school as they grow older.
• Inaccessible school buses;
• Inaccessible facilities in schools such as drinking water facilities, canteens and toilets;
• Inappropriate infrastructure in classrooms such as uncomfortable seating, slippery flooring, and low illumination;
• Misinformed attitudes and perceptions among parents, teachers, staff, and communities further influence the child’s emotional development;
• Lack of teaching and learning practices such as assistive devices that integrate inclusive technologies and digital equipment to engage the child.

Indian government efforts towards CWD

• According to, Article 21A of the Constitution and the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009, each child has the fundamental right to education and the right to have free and compulsory education for children aged 6-14 years.
• Samagra Shiksha scheme has been aligned with the recommendations of National Education Policy 2020 to ensure that all children have access to quality education with an equitable and inclusive classroom environment.
• Every child with benchmark disabilities (disability of 40% or more) has access to free education in an appropriate environment till he attains the age of 18 years.
• 5% reservation in seats in Government and Government aided higher educational institutions for persons with benchmark disabilities
• Many supportive schemes are beneficial for CWD such as Schemes like DISHA, VIKAS, etc.
• Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan adopted a ‘zero rejection policy’, emphasizing that “every child with special needs, irrespective of the kind, category and degree of disability, is provided meaningful and quality education”.
• India ratified the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.
• Aligning with this commitment, the government launched the Accessible India Campaign (Sugamya Bharat Abhiyan) in 2015.
• Leave No One Behind (LNOB): It is a project by UN-Habitat.
• LNOB is the central promise of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
• Under this, pilot training programs on enhancing accessibility and inclusion were implemented in two schools in Delhi.

Looking ahead

• Government should develop inclusive and accessible schools
• With help of advertisements, movies, and social media, the government should try to change people’s perspective on CWD.
• Spread awareness and sensitization programmes for CWD
• Training trainers for upskilling of school faculty
• Providing access to updated teaching toolkits and materials

Five principles — equitability, usability and durability, affordability, cultural adaptability, and aesthetic appeal — should be embedded from the planning to implementation to evaluation stages of providing infrastructure services in schools. With the realization of such an approach, removing the barriers to accessibility in schools will be an uphill battle, but not an insurmountable one.