Address issues of blind students: Supreme Court : Delhi

Laying emphasis on importance of education for visually-impaired students, the Supreme Court has asked the Delhi University's Empowered Committee to consider and redress within a week grievances raised by them against the curriculum for the four-year undergraduate programme (FYUP) being introduced from this academic session.

Among others, the visually-impaired students through NGO, Sambhavana, had requested the SC to direct the DU to introduce a bridge course for them in the first year so that they could easily pursue foundation course and become part of mainstream education system. The petitioner's counsel Pankaj Sinha also requested introduction of a bridge course in the second year of the FYUP for the visually-impaired. 

The DU, through senior advocate Pinki Anand, informed a bench of Justices B S Chauhan and Dipak Misra that it had constituted an Empowered Committee comprising 14 academicians to look into the special needs of the students with disabilities and suggest suitable modifications in the curricula, mode of instructions and assessment.

She said students could give their suggestions to the Committee, which has already been directed by the Delhi High Court to submit its report by June 7 so as to enable Vice-Chancellor Dinesh Singh to take a decision on the recommendations by June 15.

DU in its affidavit said the Empowered Committee consisted of experts and some visually-impaired experts from the All India Confederation of the Blinds and 'Eye Way' were special invitees to attend the meetings. The primary objective of including those individuals was to obtain their perspective on visual impairment with regard to their expertise and experiences.

The Bench referred to the provisions of Persons with Disabilities (Equal Opportunities, Protection of Rights and Full Participation) Act, 1995, and said, "Parliament has cast certain obligations on the state and central government. It is requisite of them to develop special devices and aids so that a child with disability gets equal opportunity and comes to the main stream."

"A teacher imparting education to such visually impaired children should be absolutely competent and he must have adequate training," the Bench said referring to Sinha's concern about modification in the examination system and restructuring of curriculum.

The Bench said, "It is imperative that the authorities look into the real grievances of the visually impaired people as that is the constitutional and statutory policy. The University has to live the role of Loco Parentis and show its concern to redress the grievances in proper perspective."

"Education for visually-impaired students is a great hope for them and such a hope is the brightest bliss in their lives," the SC said and hoped that the DU would look into the matter and mitigate the grievances of the visually-challenged students as far as possible.

It permitted the petitioner to submit a representation indicating its grievances and the views to the Committee within three days, which shall be dealt with by the panel within a week thereafter. 

Source : T.O.I , 2nd June 2013