Children with disabilities less likely to complete schooling- UNESCO

NEW DELHI: A recent study conducted by UNESCO and Tata Institute of Social Sciences observed that 75 per cent of five year olds and 27 per cent of children between the ages of 5 to 19 do not attend school in India. The report was released on Wednesday, July 3, and, along with the observations, recommends structural, funding and attitudinal changes to the government in order to introduce schooling to the disabled children and ensure their right to education.

The report highlights 2011 census data which showed that there were more than 78 lakh children with disabilities in the country between 5-19 years. Only 61 per cent of them were attending an educational institution. About 12 per cent had dropped out, while 27 per cent had never been to school at all.

“The number of children [with disabilities] enrolled in school drops significantly with each successive level of schooling. There are fewer girls with disabilities in school than boys,” said the report. In 2014-15, there were more than 15 lakh children with disabilities in primary school. Further, data indicates that enrolment had dropped by more than two lakh by 2017. At the higher secondary school level, there were less than 63,000 such children in 2016-17.