Srinagar, Dec 2: The J&K’s School Education Department (SDED) has failed to provide special educators to the specially-abled students in the government schools.
The move comes at a time when the newly launched National Education Policy-2020, also adopted by the J&K government, envisages an inclusive and structural change in the educational system.
However, over the years, the SED has only focused on enrolling specially-abled students in schools but has failed to provide educators to them all these years.
Over 5000 specially-abled students are enrolled in government schools for which the department has an availability of only 27 special educators.
The NEP-2020 specially mentions ‘Inclusive Education’ which reverberates with the idea that no child should be left behind in terms of educational opportunity because of his or her background and socio-cultural identities.
The Department of School Education and Literacy (DSEL) in the Ministry of Education (MoE) has kept a provision under Samagra Shiksha to hire special educators on a contract basis for providing academic support to the specially-abled students in schools.
However, the department is yet to execute the programme in letter and spirit.
“The DSEL has sanctioned around 50 positions of special educators under the Samagra Shiksha. However, the department has hired only 27 people till date,” an official said.
He said that the DSEL had been liberal in providing funds as per the sanctioned positions of special-educators but the amount remains unutilised and is surrendered back to the ministry.
“When we submit our annual plan, we submit it as per the sanctioned strength, not as per the number of people adjusted on these posts,” he said.
The SED is scheduled to observe International Day of Persons with Disabilities (IDPD) on December 3 in J&K with the specially-abled students at Teacher’s Bhawan Jammu and also in Kashmir.
The event would be organised to showcase the efforts put in by the department for the welfare of the specially-abled students.
However, on the ground, these students do not have educators available in schools.
Earlier, the chief secretary while chairing a review meeting of the SED had stressed on the need for providing special educators to the specially-abled students and directed the department to provide them in schools wherever needed.
“However, till date no such initiative was taken by the department to hire the special educators for the specially-abled students in schools,” the official said.
The Supreme Court (SC) has also issued guidelines to all the states and union territories to recruit special educators in schools.
The aspirants of special educators have also pressed for their recruitment as special educators in SED saying that barring J&K all states had implemented the SC guidelines for recruitment of special educators.
“We approached the administrative department and the directorate a number of times but in vain,” the aspirants said.
They urged the SED to advertise the posts of special educators for the recruitment of eligible candidates in light of the SC directions.
Project Director Samagra Shiksha Deep Raj told Greater Kashmir that he was not in a position to comment on the issue.
“I am out of the station to attend a training programme. I will be able to comment on the issue after I will be back,” he said.