The Greater Chennai Corporation held a support camp in Chennai on Thursday for out-of-school children with disabilities and special needs, reporting that 509 children had been enrolled in schools and 263 admitted to industrial training institutes after officials identified 7,302 children outside the formal education system.
The camp was conducted under the supervision of GCC joint commissioner for education K Karpagam. It brought together children, parents and officials to discuss education access, welfare support, legal rights, skill development and rehabilitation services.
According to information shared at the meeting, 7,302 out-of-school children have been identified by the corporation. Of these, 509 have subsequently entered schools, while another 263 have been admitted to industrial training institutes, or ITIs. The figures indicate that the civic body is tracking education and training pathways separately for children who have not remained within the school system.
The camp also focused on children requiring additional assistance. Officials said 28 children with disabilities and special needs needed further support. Families were briefed on welfare schemes and rehabilitation assistance available to children with disabilities, as well as legal provisions and skill development programmes.
Psychologists conducted individual counselling sessions with children and their parents during the camp. The sessions were intended to assess each child’s educational, psychosocial and family-related needs, according to the report. The counselling component placed the children’s circumstances alongside the administrative task of enrolment, allowing officials to examine the support required by individual families.
The corporation’s programme combines identification, school enrolment, vocational training and family guidance. School placement was reported for 509 children, while 263 were admitted to ITIs, creating two recorded routes for children identified as being out of school. The information released at the camp did not specify the locations of the participating schools or ITIs, the age distribution of the children, or the timeline over which the enrolments and admissions took place.
The camp also did not provide a further breakdown of the 7,302 identified children by type of disability, ward, gender or current education status. Those details would be needed to assess how many children remain outside schools and training institutions and what additional interventions may be required.
For families attending the meeting, the corporation presented access to education alongside welfare, legal, rehabilitation and counselling support. The next steps described in the report involve continuing assistance for identified children and connecting families with the relevant schemes, training programmes and services discussed at the camp.
