‘Ensure edu for rescued mentally challenged kids’

Mumbai: The Bombay high court on Tuesday asked the state to ensure that mentally challenged children rescued from shelter homes in Thane, Panvel and Mankhurd get access to better education and health facilities. At an earlier hearing, the HC had ordered that the rescued children should be sent to school under the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan. 
    “All the children are below 18, they will study in a school at the Mankhurd shelter. We will also start a resource centre there. We have hired special educators who will work with regular teachers at the school,” Asha Bajpai of TISS had said earlier. In 2010, the HC had set up a five-member committee headed by Bajpai to coordinate functioning of orphanages for the mentally challenged in the state following reports of death of children at a Thane home. 

Source::: The Times of India, 25-09-2013, p.09, http://epaper.timesofindia.com/Default/Client.asp?Daily=TOIM&showST=true&login=default&pub=TOI&Enter=true&Skin=TOINEW