All thanks to the Madras High Court’s direction to UGC for providing Braille question papers to candidates who are visually impaired, Miranda Tomkinson, an aspiring college lecturer, and those of his ilk came one step closer towards the dream of becoming a lecturer by appearing for the National Eligibility test (NET) conducted by the University Grants Commission (UGC) on Sunday.
The NET is a mandatory qualification for appointment as assistant professors in colleges and universities and was conducted across the country on Sunday.
Miranda moved the court submitting that he suffered from vision loss since birth and had lost his hearing ability while in school. However, despite the disability, he had qualified himself academically and was now aspiring to appear for the NET. But he was disappointed that the UGC did not have a Braille question paper.
Hearing his plight, Justice S Vaidyanathan, at a special sitting on Friday, passed an interim order directing the authorities to give him a Braille question paper.
In a brief order, the judge said: “This court directs UGC to furnish Braille questionnaire to the petitioner and similarly place persons and fulfill the other conditions mentioned in the office memorandum dated February 26, 2013 issued by the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment Department of Disability Affairs to enable them to take part in the examination, scheduled to be held on December 29. If the UGC is not going to provide this, it would amount to clear discrimination. The officials ought to have taken note of the difficulties of the disabled persons and should not have made them run from pillar to post as they are already helpless.”
Further the judge said after the examination was over, the results must be withheld pending disposal of Miranda’s main petition and posted the case to January 20, 2014.
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