Parliament Question: Students with special needs in Government schools

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF EDUCATION DEPARTMENT OF SCHOOL EDUCATION & LITERACY RAJYA SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO.510 ANSWERED ON 04.02.2026 Students with special needs in Government schools 510 Shri K.R. Suresh Reddy: Will the Minister of Education be pleased to state: (a) the number of Children with Special Needs (CwSN) currently studying in Government schools throughout the country, the details thereof; (b) the number of registered special educators currently employed throughout the country and number of vacant posts, State-wise/UT-wise, details thereof; (c) the number of schools with no special educators, State-wise/UT-wise, details thereof; and (d) steps taken by Government to encourage teachers to take up special education certification in order to reduce this shortage? ANSWER MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF EDUCATION (SHRI JAYANT CHAUDHARY) (a): As per Unified District Information System for Education (UDISE+) 2024-25, the total number of Children with Special Needs (CwSN) currently studying in Government schools across the country is 16.15 lakh. (b) & (c): The Rehabilitation Council of India (RCI), the statutory body of Government of India for regulating and monitoring the training of rehabilitation professionals and personnels, has also been given the mandate to develop Human Resource in 16 categories of Professional/ Personnel and as per the Central Rehabilitation Register (CRR) maintained by RCI, there are a total of 2.33 lakh RCI-registered Special Educators. A statement showing details of State/UT-wise registered special educators in CRR of RCI under different courses, is at Annexure-I.As per UDISE+ 2024–25, 1,12,340 schools have dedicated Special Educators. A statement showing details of State/UT-wise status of Special Educators presently in position (2024-25) under Samagra Shiksha, as per UDISE 2024-25 is at Annexure-II. The Department notified the Pupil Teacher Ratio (PTR) for special teachers in general schools for Children with special Needs (CwSN) vide Notification No. S.O. 4586 (E) dated 21.09.2022 (published on 29.09.2022), wherein the PTR notified is under: (i) One special educator for 10 CwSN at primary level. (ii) One special educator for 15 CwSN at upper primary and secondary level. Education being in the concurrent list of the Indian constitution, the recruitment of teachers including special educators and their service conditions comes under the purview of the respective State Governments and Union Territory administrations. (d): The Central Government through the Centrally Sponsored Scheme of Samagra Shiksha and PM SHRI (PM ScHools for Rising India), provides financial assistance to the States and UTs to maintain appropriate Pupil-Teacher Ratio (PTR) for various levels of schooling. This support includes provision for 2 resource persons for CwSN at the Block Resource Centre (BRC). Additionally, a five days capacity building programme for the first phase Training of Trainers was organized in 2023-24 by National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) - National Initiative for School Heads’ and Teachers’ Holistic Advancement (NISHTHA) on Equitable and Inclusive Education programme. The objective of the training is to sensitize and train general teachers and other functionaries of inclusive schools to address the learning needs of children with special needs. In order to ensure the training of general teachers in cascading mode, the department has approved training of 93345 general teachers in the AWP&B of F.Y 2025-26. NCERT organizes capacity building programmes under NISHTHA, for teachers on several themes like educational rights of CwSN, diversity in the classroom, equity and inclusion, school accessibility, understanding the learning needs of CwSN, curriculum transaction and modification, teaching learning materials, pedagogy of teaching different school subjects, assessment, universal design of learning etc. In alignment with the Government’s commitment to inclusive education, a dedicated channel for the hearing impaired has been launched under PM e-Vidya initiative on 6th December, 2024. The PM e-Vidya 24*7 DTH Channel No.31 telecasts learning content in Indian Sign Language (ISL) for the benefit of the hearing impaired. Currently, the channel telecasts NCERT school curriculum (Classes 1-5, 6 &7), concept videos, recreational content, live sessions withExperts, Teachers, Special Educators, Counsellors, Physiotherapists and Clinical Psychologists on inclusive pedagogy, health and well-being of CwSN, yoga and sports events such as the Khelo India Para games, basic courses on ISL for first responders and general population, series on Deaf achievers etc. A 5-day Basic course in Indian Sign Language has also been developed by NCERT which aims to teach fundamental skills, enabling broader awareness of ISL and creating a societal shift toward respect, understanding, and integration of sign language telecasted on the Channel No. 31 from 17th – 21st February, 2025. On 6th December, 2025 the first anniversary of the PMeVidya ISL channel launch was observed wherein a week-long special session on different themes related to Inclusive Education for CwSN was telecasted. NCERT conducts a live interaction series, titled, “Teaching Learning Interventions for Inclusive Classrooms”. NCERT textbooks have been converted into ISL related to curricular content for classes I to VII, glossary words in psychology, history, geography, urdu, economics have been produced and are being continually disseminated through DIKSHA portal, DTH channels and PM eVidya youtube Channel, on regular basis to ensure coherent access of these e-Contents. A 10,500 words ISL dictionary uploaded on DIKSHA in collaboration with ISLRTC. Braille Stationary, Large Print Textbooks and other Teaching Learning Material are also provided to CwSN under Inclusive Education component of Samagra Shiksha. Under Kitaab Ek Padhe Anek (KEPA) initiative, NCERT has developed eight prototype textbooks for classes I and II based on the Universal Design of Learning (UDL) framework to ensure accessibility for all learners. Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) has also promoted inclusive teaching through capacity-building programs, manuals, and a dedicated Handbook of Inclusive Education, offering guidance on curriculum adaptation, teaching strategies and alternative assessments for CwSN. National Council for Teacher Education (NCTE) has integrated two dedicated credits on inclusive education for CwSN within the Four-Year Integrated Teacher Education Programme (ITEP) for pre-service teacher education. This is aimed at ensuring inclusion, equal participation of CwSN in regular schools, and equipping future teachers to adapt teaching-learning processes to address varied learning needs, including those related to learning disabilities. ****Annexure-I. ANNEXURE REFERRED TO IN REPLY TO PART (B) & (C) OF THE RAJYA SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 510 TO BE ANSWERED ON 04.02.2026 ASKED BY SHRI K.R. SURESH REDDY, HON’BLE MP REGARDING “STUDENTS WITH SPECIAL NEEDS IN GOVERNMENT SCHOOLS” Registration details of special educators in Central Rehabilitation Register (CRR) of RCI under different courses State/UT No. of Special Educators registered in CRR Andaman and Nicobar Islands 75 Andhra Pradesh 10802 Arunachal Pradesh 519 Assam 679 Bihar 6002 Chandigarh 451 Chhattisgarh 1734 Delhi 17849 Goa 866 Gujarat 6726 Haryana 9538 Himachal Pradesh 2214 Jammu and Kashmir 441 Jharkhand 1678 Karnataka 4683 Kerala 11427 Ladakh 19 Lakshadweep 59 Madhya Pradesh 4511 Maharashtra 20986 Manipur 679 Meghalaya 429 Mizoram 340 Nagaland 91 Odisha 10739 Puducherry 163 Punjab 2601 Rajasthan 47986 Sikkim 116 Tamil Nadu 11663 Telangana 4869 Dadar & Nagar Haveli and Daman & Dui 14 Tripura 483 Uttarakhand 1422 Uttar Pradesh 36559 West Bengal 13922 Total 2,33,335ANNEXURE-II ANNEXURE REFERRED TO IN REPLY TO PART (B) & (C) OF THE RAJYA SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 510 TO BE ANSWERED ON 04.02.2026 ASKED BY SHRI K.R. SURESH REDDY, HON’BLE MP REGARDING “STUDENTS WITH SPECIAL NEEDS IN GOVERNMENT SCHOOLS” State/UT-wise Special Educator 2024-25 as per UDISE+ India/State/UT Schools Having Special Educator (2024-25) Andaman & Nicobar Islands 20 Andhra Pradesh 7193 Arunachal Pradesh 188 Assam 1851 Bihar 10776 Chandigarh 54 Chhattisgarh 2223 Dadra & Nagar Haveli and Daman & Diu 7 Delhi 3926 Goa 127 Gujarat 2077 Haryana 1359 Himachal Pradesh 840 Jammu & Kashmir 1765 Jharkhand 2086 Karnataka 10986 Kerala 3389 Ladakh 26 Lakshadweep 4 Madhya Pradesh 9561 Maharashtra 4860 Manipur 429 Meghalaya 176 Mizoram 49 Nagaland 111 Odisha 7142 Puducherry 90 Punjab 2202 Rajasthan 7798 Sikkim 60 Tamil Nadu 2079 Telangana 2388 Tripura 307 Uttar Pradesh 22446 Uttarakhand 1593 West Bengal 2152 India 112340