Develop educational, medical facilities for children with disabilities: Allahabad HC
“The court takes note of the fact that advanced facilities for medical care, education, and other support systems for children with disabilities are not sufficiently developed in many districts of the state.”
The Allahabad high court has directed the state government to develop appropriate educational and medical facilities, along with other support systems, in all districts of the state for the holistic development of children with disabilities.
Justice Ajay Bhanot passed the order while disposing of a petition filed by Shivani, a teacher in a government school in Etah, who sought a transfer to a school in Noida or Ghaziabad.
Advocate Kashif Rizvi, appearing for the petitioner, argued, “The son of the petitioner suffers from autism. The facilities in district Etah to address the needs of autistic children are not very advanced. Hence, her request for transfer must be allowed on humanitarian grounds, as Noida and Ghaziabad offer better facilities and treatment for such children.”
The court observed, “The court takes note of the fact that advanced facilities for medical care, education, and other support systems for children with disabilities are not sufficiently developed in many districts of the state.
“The state government is directed to make necessary efforts to ensure that proper educational and medical facilities, along with other support systems for the holistic development of children with disabilities, are developed, upgraded, and made available in all districts,” the bench added.
However, counsel for the Basic Shiksha Adhikari informed the court that the Parishad was overburdened with requests for transfers to Noida/Ghaziabad on medical grounds, making it impossible for the state to accommodate all such requests.
Thus, the court ruled that the petitioner’s transfer could be decided after the completion of the academic session, as per law, and disposed of the writ petition.