As per a national report, 27% of students with disabilities have never attended any educational institution. Moreover, there are only 0.2% students with disabilities in higher education. These numbers strongly indicate that the entire education system in India needs reform, especially during this time when the Viksit Bharat 2047 mission drives the country forward and no individual deserves to be left behind due to a lack of access to education at any level. Rishihood University, located in Delhi-NCR, marks a significant milestone in this journey, being fully accessible to persons with diverse needs.
Making Higher Education Accessible
“Who are our universities designed for?” is a question that has resonated with numerous changemakers for centuries. As the conversations about NEP 2020 dominate the higher education landscape, with a focus on multi-disciplinary learning and wider access, the role of higher educational institutions grows manifold. Social-impact models pioneered by universities such as Rishihood tend to become a statement where many higher educational institutions in India lack ramps on their premises, have narrow toilets that are not wheelchair-friendly, and neglect to include Braille in their libraries.
However, do you know that the country’s first fully accessible university, Rishihood, was conceptualized by a man who is himself a dropout and who is himself in a wheelchair due to an 80% locomotor disability?
Ajay Gupta is the co-founder of Rishihood University. He is also the renowned founder and CEO of Bachpan Play Schools and Academic Heights Public Schools (AHPS) and is thus no stranger to the education landscape. His vision for inclusive education seeks to rewrite the lived reality of thousands and lakhs of students with disabilities in India. In the process, he aims to build an inclusive society, because for India to be a developed country, it is important that everyone grows to their full potential, breaking every barrier.
From Dropout to a Nation-Builder
In a conversation with the Time Business News, Ajay Gupta shared, “I have always believed that education should not be a privilege that depends on accessible infrastructure, assistive technologies, and inclusive culture. Education should be a choice and a right, very well in alignment with the Right to Education (RTE) Act. For that to happen, our educational institutions need to take the first step.”
Ajay Gupta further shared that the inspiration for Rishihood University came while looking for the best universities in India for his daughter, but finding none that could be called inclusive. According to him, “I think that every parent wants to raise a responsible and empathetic child for whom inclusivity is the norm. Inclusivity is not only for PwDs. It is for the country’s best.”
Disheartened by his experiences in school and college, encouraged by his early ventures in the Indian education system, and confident in his capability to start a fully accessible university, he discussed the idea with his close associate and family friend, Mr. Rakesh Aggarwal, on a trip to Shimla. It all eventually led to the birth and evolution of Rishihood University, and a number of visionaries and changemakers joined the board of founders over the years.
As India debates the future of its universities with respect to AI integration, foreign collaborations, and credit frameworks, it may be time to also ask who still remains on the outside looking in. Ajay Gupta’s own educational experiences were filled with numerous hardships, but he did not fail the education system that failed him, emerging as not only one of the most impactful business leaders in inclusive education but also as an investor in emerging startups that are making a similar difference through faculty sensitization and support systems for inclusion.