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U.G.C. initiates disabled-friendly schemes

Both H.E.P.S.N. and T.E.P.S.E. are extremely enlightened ideas, and a significant step forward.
Their implementation, however, leaves much to be desired.

In its policy paper on higher education in the Ninth Five Year Plan the University Grants Commission (U.G.C.) admitted: “It is a fact that universities and colleges are not fully aware of the needs of persons with disabilities in higher education.” This recognition was part of a growing realisation about the needs of persons with disabilities, which started when Professor Armaity S. Desai took over as U.G.C. Chairperson. Not only was the U.G.C. building made disabled-friendly, two landmark schemes were outlined for introduction in various universities and colleges: T.E.P.S.E., or Teacher Preparation in Special Education; and H.E.P.S.N., Higher Education for Persons with Special Needs. These schemes were developed with the assistance of a four-member sub-committee, of which Mr Javed Abidi, Executive Director, N.C.P.E.D.P., was a member.

T.E.P.S.E. arose out of the recognition that less than 5 per cent of children with disabilities were covered by the existing formal school system. To make up for this huge discrepancy, over 100,000 specially trained teachers would be required for 10 years to fulfill the educational needs of disabled children in schools. To make this practicable, it was felt that B.Ed. and M.Ed. courses – whose special focus would be disability issues – needed to be introduced in universities and colleges.

The Ninth Plan allocated a budget of Rupees 5.94 crore for the plan period. In an extremely positive step, the guidelines state that the eligible colleges should have attached Model Schools where disabled children are admitted.

By January 2000, the U.G.C. had approved funding for the T.E.P.S.E. programme in only five universities and colleges out of the 145 that had applied.

H.E.P.S.N. fared marginally better with eight universities and colleges being approved for funding in the same time frame. H.E.P.S.N. is an extremely comprehensive scheme to promote the cause of disabled students in higher education. It has three components:

• Establishment of Disability Units in various universities and colleges in the country, to facilitate admission of disabled students in these institutions, and to provide guidance and counselling to them. These Units would also assist disabled graduates seeking gainful employment.
• Improve the accessibility of these institutions by making their infrastructure and architecture more disabled-friendly. Preference for these one-time grants of Rupees 10 lakh per university was to be given to those institutions that had enrolled the maximum number of disabled students.
• Provide special equipment to augment educational services for disabled students.

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