The New Nation - Internet Edition

BSS, Dhaka

Special Assistant to the Chief Adviser for Social Welfare and Post and Telecommunication Brig. General (Retd) MA Malek on Sunday urged the wealthy people and private organisations to come forward for creating funds to provide the disabled students with stipends.

He said, according to a recent survey, there are about 50,500 disabled students in the country and only one fourth of this number were brought under the government education stipend programme.

He was speaking as the chief guest at a stipend distributing ceremony at the auditorium of the Department of Social Welfare (DSW) organized by the DSW.

Director General of the Social Welfare Department Dr Kamal Abdul Naser Chowdhury presided over the function.

Among others, director of the Department (Operation) MA Mannan, Managing Director of the National Disabled Development Foundation Mansur Ahmed Chowdhury and president of the National Disabled Forum Khandaker Jahurul Alam spoke.

MA Malek said it is difficult for the government alone to ensure education of the disabled. All stakeholders of the society should come forward for arranging funds for disabled students, he added.

The present caretaker government has formally started stipend programme for the disabled students in 2007-08 fiscal and under this a total of Taka 5 crore would be distributed among 12,209 disabled students.

A total of Taka 4,26,300 was distributed today among 208 disabled students in 64 institutions in the city.

Of this amount, Taka 3,20,400 was distributed among 178 primary level students each receiving Taka 300 per month, Taka 56,700 among 21 secondary level students each receiving Taka 450 per month, Taka 7,200 among two higher secondary level students each receiving Taka 600 per month and Taka 42,000 among seven higher level students each receiving Taka 1,000 per month.