Appoint regular teachers for children with special needs: Apex court

Hyderabad: Telangana and Andhra Pradesh must issue notifications for the appointment of teachers for children with special needs by March 28.

This directive follows a ruling from the Supreme Court. While disposing of a petition regarding the appointment of regular teachers for children with special needs, the Court noted that there are approximately 32,794 children with special needs in Telangana and 82,227 in Andhra Pradesh.

According to the Supreme Court’s directives, each state and union territory (UT) should release notifications detailing the number of posts sanctioned for teachers who will educate children with special needs. Following the sanctioning and notification of these posts, the process must be completed within three weeks, no later than March 28, 2025.

Additionally, the Court instructed that these posts be advertised in at least two newspapers with wide circulation in their respective states, as well as on the websites of the Department of Education and the official government website for each state.

The Supreme Court further mandated that all appointments must be made with qualified, competent, and eligible teachers with the qualifications and certificates recognised by the Rehabilitation Council of India (RCI). Candidates lacking RCI certification will be deemed ineligible.

The state governments are required to immediately form a Screening Committee consisting of: 1. The State Commissioner for Persons with Disabilities (also referred to as the Disability Commissioner) as appointed under Section 79 of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (RPwD) Act, 2016, 2. The Secretary of the relevant education department, and 3. A nominee of the RCI who is knowledgeable in the prescribed area.

This three-member Screening Committee will review the qualifications of candidates currently working on a contract or daily wage basis to teach children with special needs. Teachers identified as competent, eligible, and qualified will receive the pay scale designated for the special teachers. The past experience of these teachers will also be taken into consideration.

However, a mandatory requirement for all candidates is the RCI qualification. Moreover, for individuals who have been teaching for many years, the Screening Committee will have the authority to consider relaxing the age limit in appropriate cases. The entire process must be completed within twelve weeks, including the three weeks allotted for identifying the sanctioned posts. States where posts have already been sanctioned should promptly initiate the selection process.