Puducherry: A three-day national conference on inclusive education, titled “Empowering Every Learner - Every Learner Matters 2.0”, was inaugurated at Pondicherry University (PU) on August 4, bringing together academics, educators, and disability rights advocates from across the country.

The conference is jointly organised by the Global Inclusive Education Network (GIEN), an initiative of the Centre for Disability Studies and Action, Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS), Mumbai, along with Brotherhood, Delhi, in collaboration with Satya Special School, Puducherry. The Department of Social Work, Pondicherry University, is the knowledge partner for the event.

The inaugural session, held at the university's CCC Auditorium, featured addresses from several prominent educators and organisers. Prof. A. Shahin Sultana welcomed participants, while Shri Satish Kapoor, Founding President of Brotherhood and GIEN, highlighted his organisation's long-standing efforts toward inclusive learning.

Prof. Sandhya Limaye, Chairperson of GIEN and faculty at TISS, underscored the importance of aligning practice, policy, and implementation, especially in addressing the needs of vulnerable groups, including transgender individuals and socio-economically marginalised learners.

Prof. K. Tharanikkarasu, Director, School of Education, Innovations & Research, emphasised the need for inclusive, accessible education and pointed to challenges such as poor student-teacher ratios and lack of trained educators.

The event also featured felicitations from Prof. G. Chandrika, Prof. Srilatha Juvva, and Ms. Chitra Shah. Over the next two days, participants will present papers and discuss themes such as curriculum adaptation, early intervention, and technology in inclusive education. The conference concludes August 6.