By M Ahmad
Recognizing that the Individuals with Disabilities constitute a valuable human resource for the society and that a majority of such persons can lead a better quality of life if given equal opportunities and effective access to rehabilitation measures and to cater to the academic needs, the Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities, the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment, Government of India alongwith University Grants Commission, AICTE, NHFDC, faciliate a number of schemes and scholarships for students with disability. These schemes are to be availed within a time frame and people interested must look for the dates etc carefully so as to avail the benefits and not lose the opportunity. Here are some of the schemes that invite applications from the deserving candidates:
Pre-matric Scholarship
The aim of this scholarship is to provide financial support to disabled and other students from class 1st to complete their Class 10th education and pursue professional/ technical education afterwards. It is an online process and those interested must visit the NPS Portal for compete details.
Post-matric Scholarship
This is yet another significant scholarship scheme introduced by the Government of India to serve the objective of providing scholarships for students to study further after class 10th to graduation in order to earn their livelihood and find a dignified place for themselves within the society.
Higher Education Scholarship
The scheme is introduced by the Government of India with an objective to recognize and promote quality education among students with disability and allow them to pursue post-graduation courses.
National Overseas Scholarship
The scheme provides financial assistance to the students with disabilities to pursue Master’s Degree and Ph D in other Countires in some specified fields of study.
National Fellowship Scholarship
The scheme provides financial assistance to the students with disabilities to pursue Ph D in Indian universities.
Free Coaching Scholarship
The scheme is designed to provide free coaching to the students with disabilities to prepare for competitive examinations courses like NEET, IIT-JEE, CAT etc. the coaching is provided by the Government run Institutions or through the coaching institutes for which funds are released by the Government.
AICTE Scholarship
All India Council for Technical Education under MHRD scheme is providing scholarships for students with disability to physically challenged. Students starting diploma/degree level technical course at an AICTE approved institution are eligible for this scholarship.
NHFDC Schemes
Various financial schemes are introduced by National Handicapped Finance and Development Corporation (NHFDC), which aims at enabling differently-abled students to pursue a technical or professional course from recognized institutes and get employed/self-employed or purchase assistive tools for support. Financial assistance is also provided to the professional candidates with disabilities.
(The writer is Principal (I/C), Abhedananda Home-Hifger Secondary Institution for Specially-abled Children, Solina, Rambagh, Srinagar, Kashmir. abhome78@gmail.com)
