Hyderabad: Laxity of top bosses in SED leaves CwSN students in lurch

Hyderabad: Laxity on the part of the top bosses in the State education department leaving hundreds of students, covered under Children with Special Needs (CwSN), studying in various schools in Telangana at the receiving end.

According to sources, the Centre had written a letter to all States in November 2021 informing the State Education departments (SEDs) that the National Education Policy-2020 reaffirms the provisions contained in the Rights of Persons with Disability Act 2016.

Section 17 of the RPwD Act 2016 mandates that the appropriate government and local authorities should "make suitable modifications in the curriculum and examination system to meet the needs of the students with disabilities, such as extra time for completion of examination paper, facility of scribe or amanuensis, exemption from second and third language course." Speaking to The Hans India, sources in the SED said the provisions of exceptions and concessions have already been adopted by the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE). Several State boards across the country have given effect to the same.

Acting on the same, the neighbouring State of Andhra Pradesh has already revised its provisions for CwSN to give effect to Section 17 of the RPwD Act and NEP-2020.

In turn, it facilitated CwSN students, with 21 kinds of disabilities, to avail the exemptions and concessions from Classes VI to X. Also AP has notified implementation of the same in the case of SSC Public examinations starting from the academic year 2020-21.

However, a file related to the same has been reportedly sent from the Telangana SSC board; it had reached the higher-ups moving via the Commissioner of School Education. However, months are running by but no decision has been taken. The file remained pending.

When asked, officials at the directorate level and the SSC board have been expressing their helplessness in getting things done. On the other HAND, the SED sources say that the current Principal Secretary of Education has been looking after several departments. This might be the reason for the delay in several issues related to education pending for months.