The Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) has found that private special schools run by non-governmental organisations (NGOs) for children with diverse disabilities in Odisha are plagued by poor infrastructure, a lack of basic amenities, and inadequate teaching resources.
The Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) in its compliance audit found these lapses, said an official.
A compliance audit, covering 65 Special Schools, all run by NGOs, functioning in the eight sampled districts was conducted, covering the period 2018-23, to assess maintenance of standards of the schools.
In the sampled districts, 23 (35 per cent) out of 65 sampled schools were functioning without mandatory registration, as required under the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, the report said.
Basic minimum facilities in schools like classrooms, hygienic toilets, residential hostel accommodation, ramps, kitchen, dining space, purified drinking water, etc., which are imperative, were not available in 8 to 53 sampled Special Schools, as mentioned in the audit report .
The audit squad observed a severe shortage of aids and appliances such as hearing aids, braille books, and teaching-learning materials at the sampled schools ranged from 30 to 72 per cent.
Basic amenities like cots, mattresses, bed linens, blankets, mosquito nets, etc., were not adequately available in hostels and the shortfall ranged between 8 and 43 per cent.
Staffing remained another critical gap. The CAG highlighted shortfalls of 36 per cent in teaching staff, 53 per cent in skill development staff, and 37 per cent in non-teaching staff, raising concerns about the quality of education and care provided to the children at the sampled Special Schools.
The report further criticised the Scheduled Tribes and Scheduled Castes Development Department for inadequate inspection and monitoring, which led to persistent issues such as dilapidated hostel buildings, lack of classrooms, congested living space, unhygienic toilets, lack of drinking water.