HYDERABAD: It is not easy. But with extreme dedication, para-athletes have made the country proud at the 2016 Summer Paralympic Games held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. While Mariyappan Thangavelu won a gold in the high jump category, Devendra Jhajharia clinched a gold in javelin throw for the second time. Also, Deepa Malik and Varun Singh Bhati made a special addition with a silver in shot put and a bronze in high jump, respectively.
While para-athletes are vocal about the lack of support, resources and funds, special schools have a different set of problems.
Though children with special needs show enthusiasm and signs of development while at play, lack of facilities is a major hurdle before them.
S Rajashekar, a special teacher at the Rural Development Trust that works with children with disabilities, said sports played an important role in their development. He shared an instance where children displayed signs of cognitive development on the field.
“In March, we had travelled with nine children with cerebral palsy and multiple disabilities to Kolkata for a friendly match at the Indian Institute of Cerebral Palsy. We had trained them in our school at Anantapur. One boy, an amputee with no hands, usually needed support to move around in his wheel chair. After we showed him some photos of how he can throw the ball with his head, he used the technique on the field, much to our surprise,” recalled Rajashekar, who was trained under a Spanish special sports coach in Boccia, a precision sport specifically played by persons with multiple disabilities.
They were highly involved and showed great levels of energy and willingness to learn, he added. However, not all schools have facilities to further such talents.
Sai Baba Goud, chairman of Devnar Foundation for the Blind here, said stigma attached to the abilities of such children posed a hurdle. “That is the first factor. Besides that, lack of a proper ground facility makes training a difficult job,” he said.
Students of Devnar Foundation have been performing exceptionally well in cricket and regularly participate in national and international championships. The foundation itself conducts an all India cricket tournament.
“We do this to encourage children. They are also enthusiastic about swimming and running races, among others. But for us to regularly pursue such activities is a problem because we do not have a proper playground,” said Goud.
The school is located in Begumpet, just opposite to the Hyderabad Public School that has two big playgrounds.
“We once requested them to share the ground, but they refused. It would be of great help if the government assisted us,” he said.
Prerana Special School here with 50 children, mainly with intellectual disabilities, faced the same problem. T Vijayalakshmi, founder of the school and parent of a child with multiple disabilities and a trained coach in special sports, said lack of a playground makes it difficult for them to encourage the children to take up sporting activities.
The now-defunct Special Olympic Committee (SOC) here was active in providing training and equipment. “Till three years ago, we used to get a lot of support from them. We had specialists come and train us in Boccia. We don’t know what happened afterwards,” said Meena Yellepeddy, founder of Medha Sampathi Special School here, which has 38 children with special needs.
The committee is, however, active in Bengaluru.
Kavitha Krishnamoorthy, founder of Kili Kili, which works to create inclusive public play spaces accessible for all children informed that the Special Olympic movement is a serious affair in Bengaluru.
“There has been a shift in play spaces in Bengaluru in the last 10 years. Required facilities for these children are not completely absent, neither are they adequate. Schools link up kids with good sporting skills with the SOC and they take it forward,” she said.
For adults, the need to engage them in an activity is stronger and hence yoga or basic physical exercise is included. But for children, it is still just an activity.
“Schools and parents are keen on correcting these children, to bring them as close as they can to being ‘normal’. But sports is not a priority. They need to take it seriously. Some kids are really good at using their body,” Kavitha added.
Sudha Ramamoorthy, a special educator for 17 years and currently working at Equals, Centre for Promotion of Social Justice, Chennai, said, “There are no special sports teachers like special educators.
The Rehabilitation Council of India, which sets guidelines and approves courses for these children, does not have anything much to do with special sports coaches. This is a general perspective. Look at sports in mainstream schools, no one is thinking about this even though it is a right and the Right to Education Act is in place.”
These children do not require anything specific, explained Madhavi Latha, president, Wheelchair Basketball Federation. “People think that we require separate spaces. But with just a few changes, existing facilities can be used and be accessible. That would also make the spaces inclusive. Inaccessible stadia, infrastructure and non-availability of sporting equipment are other challenges,” she said, adding that importing equipment is a costly affair. “It would be helpful if someone starts making equipment and gear locally,” she said.