Question : Educational Facilities to Differently Abled

(a) whether any special project has been initiated by the Government for providing educational facilities to the differently abled in the country during the last three years and the current year till date;

(b) if so, the details thereof, State-wise including Maharashtra;

(c) the details of Government run institutes functioning for the deaf and blind persons in the country, State-wise including Maharashtra; and

(d) the details of the projects proposed to be undertaken by the Non Governmental Organisations for the welfare of deaf persons in the country, particularly in the State of Maharashtra?

(a) & (b) Yes Sir. The Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities has introduced the following Scholarship schemes for providing educational facilities to the differently abled in the country (including State of Maharashtra) during the last three years and current year:-

(i) Rajiv Gandhi National Fellowship for Students with Disabilities,
(ii) National Overseas Scholarship for Students with Disabilities,
(iii) Pre-Matric Scholarship and Post-Matric Scholarship for Students with Disabilities,
(iv) Scholarship for Top Class Education for Students with Disabilities,

A Statement indicating details of the above mentioned schemes and the number of candidates awarded Rajiv Gandhi National Fellowship for Students with Disabilities during the last three years and the current year including Maharashtra are at Annexure-I & II respectively.

Further, the Department is implementing a Scheme, namely, Deendayal Disabled Rehabilitation Scheme (DDRS) under which grant-in-aid is provided to Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) for their projects, aimed at enabling persons with disabilities to reach and maintain their optimal, physical, sensory, intellectual, psychiatric or social functional levels. The Scheme is being implemented since 1999. There are 18 model projects under the Scheme which includes special schools projects for differently abled persons.



(c) National Institute for Visually Handicapped (NIVH), Dehradun and Ali Yavar Jung National Institute for Hearing Handicapped (NIHH), Mumbai are autonomous bodies under this Department working in the field of Visually Impaired and Hearing Impaired respectively.

(d) Under the Deendayal Disabled Rehabilitation Scheme (DDRS), assistance in the form of Grant-in-Aid (GIA) is being provided to 89 special schools for Hearing Impaired (HI). 30 new proposals in respect of special schools for Hearing Impaired (HI) received from NGOs have been recommended by the Screening Committee of this Department for assistance. A statement indicating State wise special schools for Hearing Impaired (HI) is at Annexure-III,

The Department has launched a National Action Plan for skill training of Persons with Disabilities (PwDs) in March, 2015. Under this, skill development of Persons with Disabilities (PwDs) is being taken up in the country through a network of training partners under Central Government, State Governments, Public Sector Undertakings, Non-Governmental Organisations, Trusts, etc., including the State of Maharashtra. The implementation of the plan is under process.
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