A report released on August 18, 2026, stated that only 14.1% of regular schools in Goa have functional special toilets for children with special needs (CWSN). The state’s performance is far below the national level of 38% in terms of provision of child-friendly infrastructure for differently-abled students.
The state has a total of 1,473 active educational institutions. However, only 208 schools currently have functional special toilets for CWSN students.
The UDISE+ report has given a break-up on the number of schools with special toilets based on management categories. It revealed that the private unaided institutes are at the forefront with 20.3%, followed by government-aided schools at 15.7%. The state government organizations came last with just 11.8% of their campuses having special toilets for children with special needs
-
Total number of CWSN students enrolled: 4,719
-
Total number of schools with functional special toilets: 208
-
Total number government schools with functional special toilets: 91
-
Number of institutes with non-functional special toilets: Many schools have already constructed special toilets, but they are not in proper working condition
NEP guidelines not being met by local government
The current scenario highlights the state’s inability to meet the targets set by the National Education Policy (NEP). The policy expects states to ensure the smooth inclusion of CWSN students into the mainstream educational system. It also mandates the provision of barrier-free infrastructure in all educational institutes. Although Goa has done exceptionally well in constructing ramps (with 92.9% government schools having ramps), the state’s total ramps percentage decreases to 65.8% when the private and government-aided institutes are taken into consideration. Due to the lack of required infrastructure, normal school-going children face extreme difficulties on a daily basis.
Rights bodies, activists consider notification to be a legal notice
Disability rights groups and activists have expressed disappointment over the report. Disability Rights Association of Goa (DRAG) members said that they had sent a legal notice to the directorate two months ago. They also mentioned that access to a normal toilet is a fundamental right for persons with disabilities and that they would approach the court if nothing changed by the deadline. These groups argued that the Right to Education Act and Persons with Disabilities Act must be enforced.
Need for combined effort from education and PWD departments
Social coordinators and parent body members have called for an immediate combined effort from the education and PWD departments. Experts feel that there is a dire need to educate school principals and parent-teacher associations about the importance of constructing CWSN-friendly infrastructure. The state government should take charge and provide financial aid to all management bodies while also instructing them to complete the task at the earliest. Regular monitoring and audits must be done to ensure that no special needs child loses the right to education due to the absence of required infrastructure.
Click Here for More Latest News