Fake disability certificates: Health department on alert, doctors under scrutiny in Kerala
'Certificates are typically reviewed only when a specific complaint is filed. However, we are working on implementing a more transparent and efficient system without causing delays,' a department source said.
The scam was exposed after the Society for Educating and Empowering Differently Abled filed a complaint with the Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau regarding a teacher appointment in Kannur. It was revealed that the medical certificate had exaggerated the applicant's disability to secure a job intended for individuals with disabilities.
'As many as thirty fake certificates were created in Kuttiyadi, Kozhikode, alone. There should be action against the doctors involved in this racket,' said Kulathur Jaisingh, a High Court lawyer and public activist who appealed to the Chief Minister's Office for an expanded investigation.
Disability certificates are essential for individuals with disabilities (PWD) to access educational opportunities, employment, insurance benefits, and travel services. It can take at least three months to obtain a certificate through the Swabalamban portal. These certificates are issued for 21 different disabilities under the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act.
The Kerala Social Security Mission, the Health Department, and local self-government bodies also hold camps to issue certificates and Unique Disability Identity cards.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
NDTV
36 minutes ago
- NDTV
49 Rabies Cases In Delhi This Year, Over 65,000 Stray Dogs Sterilised In 6 Months
New Delhi: A total of 49 cases of rabies have been reported in the national capital, so far this year, while over 65,000 stray dogs have been sterilised and vaccinated over a six-month period, according to the MCD's official data. The rabies cases were recorded at the MVID Hospital between January and July of this year, while 35,198 animal bite incidents were reported across the capital from January to June, according to official data accessed by PTI. To address these issues, an equal number of anti-rabies vaccines (ARV) were administered during this period, an official told PTI. In a bid to control the stray dog population and prevent the spread of rabies, the MCD sterilised and immunised 65,031 stray dogs between January 25 and June 25 this year. In comparison, the civic body has projected that 97,994 dogs will be sterilised and vaccinated between April 2024 and December 2025. This follows previous years where 79,959 dogs were sterilised in 2023-2024, and 59,076 in 2022-2023, indicating a consistent increase in efforts. Officials noted that the civic body is focused on enhancing the efficiency and capacity of the sterilisation network amid rising public concerns over stray dog attacks in various parts of the city. To further tackle the issue, the MCD's standing committee formed a subcommittee earlier this month to focus exclusively on stray dog management. The subcommittee held its first meeting on Thursday, during which it decided to re-engage the NGOs currently involved in the sterilisation programme and enlist more capable organisations. An intensive month-long sterilisation drive is also being planned, officials said. Meanwhile, Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta also chaired a separate meeting on the issue of stray animals and directed officials to treat the matter not merely as an administrative task but as a social responsibility. She stressed the need for a comprehensive and humane approach to address the crisis. "The chief minister instructed that animal lovers, experts, and social organisations be consulted, and their suggestions incorporated into the policy-making process," stated a post from the Chief Minister's Office on X. These latest measures come amid growing public fear over frequent dog bite incidents in the capital. Currently, 20 sterilisation centres are operational in Delhi, managed by registered NGOs. These centres carry out surgical sterilisation and administer anti-rabies vaccinations before releasing the animals back to their original locations, according to the Animal Birth Control (ABC) guidelines.
New Indian Express
4 days ago
- New Indian Express
ACB flags major lapses at NTR Hospital; 22 medical staff face action
VIJAYAWADA: Health Minister Satya Kumar Yadav has ordered a swift inquiry into serious irregularities at NTR Hospital in Anakapalle, following an Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) report indicting 22 medical personnel. The report, based on a surprise inspection in February 2020 and submitted in June this year, recommended major penalties against the then District Coordinator of Health Services (DCHS), nine doctors, and 12 nurses. Citing lapses such as unauthorised canteen operations, failure to disclose patient meal details, irregular civil works, poor food quality monitoring, and mismanagement of hospital duties, the report painted a grim picture of hospital administration. The DCHS was specifically accused of failing to enforce staff attendance and neglecting key supervisory responsibilities. Disciplinary action has also been recommended against nine doctors for negligence, and 12 nurses for patient overexposure, poor hygiene, lack of diet charts, and improper medicine documentation. The Minister also ordered action against a driver for fuel misappropriation worth Rs 74,000 and a sanitation worker for unauthorised medical dressing duties. Reaffirming his commitment to reform public healthcare, Minister Yadav said the move underscores the government's zero-tolerance approach to corruption and inefficiency. Since assuming office, he has prioritised staff accountability, regular inspections, and performance-based transfers. In recent months, the government has reassigned hospital superintendents, medical college principals, office superintendents, and clerical staff to plug loopholes in governance. Non-performers were removed and replacements appointed on merit. Field-level officers, including District Medical and Health Officers (DMHOs), were instructed to ensure strict implementation of health schemes and maintain discipline in operations. Calling the ACB report a reminder of past administrative failures, the Minister assured continued reforms to restore public confidence in government hospitals and ensure better service delivery.
The Print
23-07-2025
- The Print
Legal battle behind her, 8-yr-old with autism can now return to school. HC upheld her ‘right to belong'
In a landmark judgment, the Delhi High Court Tuesday directed GD Goenka Public School in New Delhi's Model Town to re-admit the child into an age-appropriate class, reinforcing the legal mandate of inclusive education under the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016. 'Expelling any child from school can be traumatic, and I was in a situation of uncertainty,' her mother told ThePrint Thursday, adding that the child did not get the attention she needed at school. After two years of legal proceedings and emotional turmoil, this week the child won the right to return to her former school where her sibling is also a student. New Delhi: For more than two long years, the eight-year-old diagnosed with autism remained out of school, confused and isolated as her developmental progress stalled. Her parents first took her out of school temporarily, and later the school refused to take her back. 'Winning the case has brought a big sense of relief. However, there's still apprehension in my mind about whether the school will genuinely treat my child equally and provide the support she deserves,' the mother said. Diagnosed with mild autism in infancy, the child was admitted to the school during the COVID-19 lockdown in 2021 under the 'sibling category' and studied online just like other children of her age for the next few months, according to her mother. 'Her milestones had been late. She started walking when she was 17 months old and she began sitting when she was nine months old. The doctors had then only told us that she was at the risk of autism,' the mother said. Problems began when the lockdown came to an end and offline classes were resumed in schools. According to the parents' petition in court, shared with ThePrint, the child began exhibiting behaviours associated with her condition, running around, screaming, and being unable to sit still, behaviours the school did not accommodate or address supportively. Despite repeated requests from her mother to allow a shadow teacher or provide a special educator, the school declined, says the petition. The mother emphasised that autistic children are not 'mentally retarded' but have a 'different way of thinking'. With the right support, she said, autistic children can accomplish things and grow into exceptional leaders, scientists, entrepreneurs, and more. 'Giving them a nurturing environment is not a privilege, it's their right. Look at the lives of people like Einstein, Mozart, Greta Thunberg, or even Ramanujan, many of them displayed traits of neurodivergence,' she told ThePrint. Speaking to ThePrint, Kamal Gupta, the advocate representing GD Goenka Public School in court, termed the institute as 'inclusive' and said all such schools have limitations. 'The child in question had 86 percent progressive autism, which is certified by AIIMS as a multiple disability disorder,' he said. Gupta added that the school is currently catering to the maximum number of children from the Economically Weaker Section (EWS) and disability categories and does not have any more seats to accommodate more children. 'The provisions of the Persons with Disabilities Act have been interpreted by a division bench… (and) the right to be educated in a school of choice has to be interpreted meaningfully, depending upon the number of seats available (demand & supply),' he said, adding that it was in the 'best interest' of the child to study in a special school. ThePrint reached GD Goenka Public School too with queries through email but had not received a response by the time of publication. This report will be updated if and when a response is received. Also Read: Dress code for dropping kids at Delhi school: no nightwear, no chappals. Parents call it 'unreasonable' 'Embrace inclusivity' According to the mother, her child was being neglected at school. 'So, we decided to take her out of school temporarily without formally withdrawing her admission,' she said. 'The school had advised us to focus on therapy to help improve her condition. But when we returned after a year-long break to resume her studies at school, they refused to take her back.' Instead, the administration allegedly pushed the family to withdraw the girl from school, claiming she was better suited for a school for children with special needs. In October 2022, the school authorities, according to the petition, suggested that the child attend classes for only two hours a day or just two days a week. In December 2022, the mother said, she wrote to the school complaining about an injury to the child. A meeting was subsequently scheduled between the school principal and the mother, during which she was shown letters of complaints from other parents but wasn't allowed to examine them closely, the petition states. This was followed by an ultimatum given to the parents by the school, asking them to withdraw the child, said the mother. Adding, 'From January 2023, she didn't go to school.' Faced with continuous denials from the school, the family moved the Delhi High Court, challenging what they described as 'illegal, arbitrary, and discriminatory' action by the school. During the 2024-25 session, the child was allotted a seat at the school under the children with special needs category but later denied admission again, her mother said. After this, the parents approached the court seeking enforcement of their child's right to education. 'Parents should never give up fighting for their child's rights. The journey is hard, especially for children with special needs, but justice can prevail. Schools should work with parents, not against them, and truly embrace inclusivity, not just on paper but in practice,' the mother told ThePrint. 'It is about belongingness' Justice Vikas Mahajan, delivering the verdict this week, underscored the constitutional and statutory guarantee of inclusive education. 'It needs no emphasis that 'inclusive education' is not merely about access to education; it is about belongingness,' the court stated. 'Every child has a place in the classroom not because they are the same, but because they are different, and that difference enriches the learning environment for all.' In a significant move, the court directed the Directorate of Education to constitute a board to assess what would be in the child's best interest. The committee's report concluded that the child should continue in the same school with age-appropriate class placement and the support of a shadow teacher. 'The school must ensure that the child avails all the accommodations/adaptations a child with special needs is entitled for,' the committee advised. Accepting the findings, the Delhi High Court has directed GD Goenka to re-admit the child with immediate effect. It also mandated that the Directorate of Education monitor the implementation of suggestions and ensure she is not harassed again. 'It is her constitutional right to study in an inclusive school system. And they (GD Goenka) have done wrong by denying it. And that's why we got directions to re-admit her,' her counsel Ashok Agarwal told ThePrint, adding that the school can put her in any appropriate class and the parents are willing to provide a shadow teacher. 'The court has recognised that she has the right to study in a mainstream school, and that denying her that right amounts to discrimination.' (Edited by Nida Fatima Siddiqui) Also Read: Infra & safety gaps to poor digital learning record, what Centre's index says about Bengal schools
