How India Can Evolve an Inclusive Policy for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing

• Deaf and hard-of-hearing (DHH) individuals in India face systemic marginalization, academic neglect, and societal stigma.
• Reliance on 'oralist' teaching methods over sign language remains a primary driver of high dropout rates among DHH students.
• While recent legislation and institutions signify progress, significant gaps persist in data collection, school access, and implementation of accessibility standards.

Challenges in Education

• Historic reliance on oralism—teaching through lip-reading and speech—marginalizes students by shunning sign language as a visible marker of disability.
• Academic impact: 19% of DHH school-aged children (6–13) were out of school or dropouts as of 2014, far exceeding the national average of 2.97%.

Policy and Institutional Landscape

• Statistical discrepancies: Definitions of hearing disability have fluctuated in Census data, complicating effective policymaking. Official 2011 estimates (5 million) significantly trail National Association for the Deaf estimates (18 million).
• Legislative progress:
  • Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act (2016): Mandates inclusive, appropriate education and free schooling for children aged 6–18.
  • ISLRTC (est. 2015): Has standardized Indian Sign Language (ISL), developing a dictionary with 10,000 terms as of 2021.
  • Media accessibility: 2019 guidelines initiated a phased rollout of closed-captioning and sign interpretation for television broadcasters.

The Way Forward

• Linguistic recognition: Formalize ISL as an official language of India and recognize its users as a linguistic minority.
• Infrastructure expansion: Increase the number of schools and higher education institutes catering to DHH students.
• Evaluation and Research: Conduct mandatory impact assessments on current policies and invest in research to determine the most effective didactic approaches.
• Social Awareness: Launch campaigns to dismantle societal biases and improve the integration of DHH individuals into the mainstream.