HC asks govt to convene medical boards

A Division Bench of the Kerala High Court on Wednesday directed the State government to take an appropriate decision on convening special medical boards to assess the disability of special children and issue them disability certificate promptly.

The directive was passed while disposing of a public interest litigation filed by Devashrayam Charitable Society, Palakkad, seeking a directive to convene medical boards in all districts.

The petitioner pointed out that in view of COVID-19, the district medical boards, which assess the disability and issues certificates to these children were not functioning regularly.

Benefits denied

As such, many of these children were unable to access the benefits of grants, scholarships, and attendant benefits, due from the State and Central governments. The petitioner submitted that most of the parents of the children came from very poor backgrounds. The absence of disability certificate adversely would affect even the studies of children, who were entitled to have assistance in writing exams.

The government submitted that it was decided to convene medical boards for children selected by the clinical psychologist. The district medical officers have been directed to convene Special Medical Boards and to issue certificate to the deserving students as per the Right of Persons with Disabilities Act at the earliest.

The court also asked the Directorate of Health Services to explore the possibility of fixing a specific date for convening medical boards in each district. This should be in addition to regular examination being conducted every Wednesday in a month.

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