Morung Express News
Dimapur | September 27
The Supreme Court on Tuesday directed the Nagaland Government carry forward the process of appointment the process of appointing teachers for children with special needs.
It further asked the State to submit a compliance affidavit by December 15, 2025.
Hearing the matter on September 23, a Bench comprising Justice Dipankar Datta and Justice Augustine George Masih took up the status of appointments in Jharkhand, Punjab, Nagaland, Odisha, and Delhi, in line with its earlier order dated March 7, 2025.
In its affidavit filed on July 19, 2025, the State of Nagaland informed that 36 posts of special teachers had been sanctioned and notified on March 28. It further stated that 46 contractual teachers had been identified, and an advertisement inviting applications from eligible candidates was issued on August 8. The State also constituted a Screening Committee on July 23, 2025, as per court directions.
The Nagaland Government counsel also submitted that a proposal was under consideration to convert 34 posts of special teachers.
Taking note, the apex court issued the aforesaid direction.
Case background
The matter originates from a writ petition filed in 2016 regarding the education rights of children with special needs. On October 28, 2021, the Supreme Court delivered a landmark judgment directing all States and Union Territories to identify and fill sanctioned posts for “special teachers” under the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (RPwD) Act, 2016.
The Court also approved the Central Government’s proposed teacher-pupil ratio of 1:10 at the primary level and 1:15 at the middle and secondary levels, with mandatory Rehabilitation Council of India (RCI) certification for appointments.
However, in its March 7, 2025 order, the Court expressed concern that despite repeated directions, no State or Union Territory had made appointments on sanctioned posts. Many had not even identified them, though data on children with special needs was available. As per status provided in the Court on March 7, the figure for Nagaland stood at 4,084 children.
The Court also noted that several States continued to depend on contractual or ad hoc teachers, some in service for nearly 20 years.
To address this, it directed all States and UTs to notify sanctioned posts within three weeks, advertise vacancies widely, and constitute a three-member Screening Committee comprising the State Disability Commissioner, Education Secretary, and a Rehabilitation Council of India (RCI) nominee to evaluate contractual teachers for regular appointments, subject to RCI qualifications.
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