New Delhi: Children having disability including those with cerebral palsy, mental retardation and autism will be treated as "disadvantaged groups" who will get precedence over others under the Right to Education Act.
The government today introduced a bill in the Rajya Sabha to amend the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act 2009, which provides for free and compulsory education to all children of the age group of 6 to 14 years.
The children belonging to scheduled castes, scheduled tribes, socially, educationally and economically backward classes get preference over others under the historic Act
enacted last year.
However, children with with disabilities were left out of the special category. Introducing the amendment bill in the Upper House, HRD Minister Kapil Sibal said the government
wants to ensure "specific needs (of these children) are given precedence in the elementary education system in the country."
In another amendment, the bill proposes to exempt the unaided schools run by minority institutions from the requirement of forming school management committees and
preparation of school development plans.
PTI
First Published: Friday, April 16, 2010, 14:29