Ensuring Physical Accessibility for Persons with Disabilities in Higher Education Institutes - An Assessment of Legislative and Supportive Framework for Inclusive and Equitable Quality Education in India

Abstract

UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) 2030 Agenda aim to promote peace and prosperity for people on this planet. Agenda 4 is aimed at quality education and agenda 10 talks about reduced inequalities among people. Education and equality both are fundamental rights that must be extended to people irrespective of  gender, religion, race, social status, economic background etc. Inclusion of persons with disabilities (PwDs) in education requires access to physical and learning environment on equal basis along with appropriate teaching- learning methods and access to information. There are many initiatives from Government of India to facilitate an inclusive and accessible education for PwDs. This paper is an assessment of initiatives by the government in terms of legislations and policies to encourage participation of PwDs in higher education, functions of statutory bodies responsible for implementation of these provisions. The method used in this study includes searching of relevant legislative instruments and critically analyzing the working of identified statutory bodies in ensuring physical accessibility for PwDs in higher education institutes within India. The results highlight the gaps between the legislative and the implementation mechanisms.