Kolhapur school to bring disabled into mainstream

Express News Service

Kolhapur, April 30: AN NGO in Kolhapur has crossed all bureaucratic hurdles and taken the lead in integrating physically-challenged children into the mainstream. After a year-long fight, a primary school they run has got the Maharashtra government’s approval to admit special children with others and develop in them a sense of social belonging.

Helpers of the Handicapped had conceived the idea when it started the Samarth Vidya Mandir at its hostel in Unchgaon. The project, however, had to be shelved after a directive making it mandatory for promoters of educational institutions to get written approval before admitting special students and conducting regular classes.

For the office-bearers of Helpers, led by president Naseema Hurzuk, it has been a long struggle. With the fate of 80 physically-challenged students and their trainers hanging in the balance, the NGO insisted for the state’s approval.

‘‘I met the Education Minister thrice and even submitted recommendations by three people’s representatives, as required,’’ said Hurzuk. Unable to cut through the red tape, Hurzuk, then decided to launch a hunger strike before the ministry from April 23. The move got her an audience with the Chief Minister and the approval followed.

Helpers is now all set to re-start the project from June 7 by opening admissions for Class I and II. ‘‘We have requested the government to provide us the six hectares of land adjacent to our hostel,’’ she said.

Helpers representatives said the need for such a project was felt for long as the physically-challenged students living in their hostel had to spend four hours travelling up to 30 km a day to reach their schools.

The students were finding it difficult to get admission in hostels near their institutions. They were becoming prone to overdependence on wheel-chairs, calipers and artificial limbs, they said. Some students found their classrooms on the upper floors.

The aim was to bring about a co-existence of physically-challenged students with others and help those brought up in the mainstream realise their social responsibility.