JNU's attitude towards the differently-abled students is better: Differently-abled scholars
What's the story
Jawaharlal Nehru University's differently-abled scholars feel the university is quite inclusive and even the perception towards them on campus is without any bias. 29-year-old Ranjith Rebello, who was conferred his doctorate degree at the varsity's convocation on August 8, said JNU was much better than many universities in India and even abroad in its attitude towards the differently-abled students. Here are more details.
More supportive
Varsity needs to be more supportive towards differently-abled students: Rebello
Rebello, who is blind since childhood and belongs to Karnataka, aspires to be a civil servant. He, however, felt that the varsity needs to be more supportive towards students for their research work. "If we asked for assistance, the administration would say things like, 'How can you do that?' or 'We don't have provisions for this,'" he said.
Difficulties
Things aren't rosy for us anywhere in the world: Rebello
Rebello said that things aren't rosy for differently-abled candidates anywhere in the world. "But JNU is better than any other university when it comes to its perception towards differently-abled students," he added. Rebello, who did his research on political, economic, and cultural aspects of India's relations with Kuwait, rued about not being able to integrate Arabic into his research due to some technological constraints.
Helping hand
Delhi University and JNU embrace us: Another differently-abled student
Another Ph.D. scholar, Babu Lal Meena, felt that varsities like Delhi University and JNU embrace differently-abled students. Meena, who is wheelchair-bound and belongs to Rajasthan, completed his doctorate on Russia and India's bilateral and regional engagement. "I think it's only DU and JNU that embrace us as equals," said Meena, who is currently teaching political science at DU's Sri Aurobindo College.
Challenges
Faced many challenges before coming to Delhi: Manish Kanaujia
Another student, Manish Kanaujia, who belongs to Bihar, was affected by glaucoma when he was in ninth standard and was rendered totally blind. Kanaujia said he faced many challenges before he came to Delhi and it was only while doing his graduation and Masters in Ramjas College and MPhil and Ph.D. in JNU that he was at ease. Kanaujia is teaching at Satyawati College.