BHUBANESWAR: Under scrutiny over ‘non-distribution’ of hearing aids to around 644 students with special needs, the Odisha government has asked the district social security officers (DSSOs) to make arrangement for the same in 15 special schools across the state.
In a letter to the DSSOs, the Social Security and Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities (SSEPD) department has asked them to carry out a detailed assessment of these schools covered by the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) in its audit, and ensure distribution of hearing aids and other required aids and appliances to the hearing-impaired students, wherever required, under the Bhima Bhoi Bhinnakhyama Samarthya Abhiyan (BBSA).
The department stated that CAG, in one of its audit carried out for the period between 2018-19 to 2022-23, pointed out that hearing aid and other eligible aids and appliances couldn’t be provided to 644 hearing-impaired students of 15 sampled special schools as the students couldn’t participate in the Samarthya Sibirs conducted during this period.
The audit further observed that the DSSOs concerned had not informed the authorities of these special schools about organisation of these Sibirs. Accordingly, the SSEPD department further asked the DSSOs to ensure that special schools and other institutions where differently-abled students are availing services, are mandatorily informed in advance about these camps in strict adherence to the provisions of BBSA.
