Disha scheme

About the Scheme

1. Early intervention and school readiness scheme.
2. Children in the age group of 0-10 years are eligible.
3. Provision of therapies, trainings, and support to family members.
4. Day-care facilities to PwD for at least 4 hours a day.
5. Batch size: 20 PwDs.
6. RO should maintain a 1:1 ratio for LIG (including BPL) and above LIG PwDs.

Scheme Description

This scheme aims at setting up Disha Centres for early intervention for Persons with Disability (PwD) aged 0-10 years, covered under the National Trust Act, through therapies, trainings, and support for family members. Registered Organizations (RO) should provide the following minimum facilities in their Disha Centre:

I. Day Care

RO should provide day-care facilities to PwD for at least 4 hours a day (between 8 am to 6 pm) along with age-specific activities. Day care should be open for at least 21 days a month. The minimum attendance required for a PwD in the Disha centre is 15 days per month for the National Trust to fund the PwD.

The batch size of a Disha centre is 20 PwDs, with a maximum number of PwDs allowed at 30% extra of batch size, i.e., 26 for Disha Centres. Upon reaching the maximum limit of 26 PwDs, Disha centres shall not allow any more PwDs to enroll in the centre. ROs are encouraged to reapply if they have a sufficient number of PwDs for a new Disha Centre.

RO should maintain a 1:1 ratio for LIG (including BPL) and above LIG PwDs (which will be paid seats for RO). Payment for above LIG seats can be received by the RO from parents, guardians, family members, or any other institute/individual directly, as per mutually agreed terms and conditions between the RO and the other party (parents, guardians, family members, RO, or other institute/individual).

ROs are encouraged to connect with pediatricians or experts in related fields to help increase enrollment in the Disha centre.

Staff Requirement

1. Provision of a Special Educator or Early Intervention Therapist
2. Physiotherapist or Occupational Therapist
3. Counsellor for PwD
4. Caregiver
5. Ayas

Staffing

There should be a provision of a Special Educator or Early Intervention Therapist, Physiotherapist or Occupational Therapist, and Counsellor for PwD along with Caregiver and Ayas in the centre. Availability of a physical trainer and speech therapist in these centres is also desirable.

The frequency or schedule of the staff is to be followed as below:

Infrastructure Facilities

1. Medical/Assessment room (with therapeutic aids and appliances)
2. One activity room
3. One recreation room
4. Provision for a personal computer, scanner, and internet connection for office purposes

Infrastructure facilities

Disha centre must have a Medical/Assessment room (with therapeutic aids and appliances), one activity room, and one recreation room (all rooms to be of reasonable size) for PwD.

The Disha centre should also have provisions for a personal computer, scanner, and internet connection for office purposes, for sending fund requests, submitting reports, etc., to the National Trust.

Staff Requirement

1. Provision of a Special Educator or Early Intervention Therapist
2. Physiotherapist or Occupational Therapist
3. Counsellor for PwD
4. Caregiver
5. Ayas

Staffing

There should be a provision of a Special Educator or Early Intervention Therapist, Physiotherapist or Occupational Therapist, and Counsellor for PwD along with Caregiver and Ayas in the centre. Availability of a Physical trainer and speech therapist in these centres is also desirable.

The frequency or schedule of the staff is to be followed as below:

Infrastructure Facilities

1. Medical/Assessment room (with therapeutic aids and appliances)
2. One activity room
3. One recreation room
4. Provision for a personal computer, scanner, and net connection for office purposes.

Infrastructure Facilities

Disha centre must have one Medical/Assessment room (with therapeutic aids and appliances), one activity room, and one recreation room (all rooms to be of reasonable size) for PwD.

Disha centre should also have a provision for a personal computer, scanner, and internet connection for office purposes, for sending fund requests, submitting reports, etc., to the National Trust.

Funding Pattern

Funding Pattern

National Trust will provide funding to the Disha Centre under the following three heads:

I. Setup Cost

This is a non-recurring one-time cost that would be provided to RO initially to set up Disha Centre.

II. Sustenance Cost

Sustenance Cost shall be provided by National Trust to Disha Centre for a maximum of 3 months after the setup period.

III. Monthly Recurring Cost

The National Trust shall pay monthly recurring costs for all PwD at Disha Centre starting from the first month of operations. Funding is provided under certain conditions regarding PwD enrolment levels.

Eligibility Criteria for Registered Organisations (ROs) and Persons with Disabilities (PwDs)

Filter criteria for applying under the new schemes is as under:

1. Must be Registered with the National Trust.
2. Must be Registered under the PwD Act.
3. Must not have been blacklisted by the State / Central Govt. / Other Govt.
4. RO should have minimum 2 years of experience of working with PwDs with at least one year in one of the four disabilities under the National Trust Act
5. Bank Account details of the Registered Organisation.
6. E-mail ID and contact details of the Registered Organisation.

Note: Unless the Registered Organisation fulfills the above criteria, they cannot apply under the scheme.

1. Criteria for Registered Organisation (RO)
2. Criteria for Persons with Disabilities (PwDs)

1. Criteria for Registered Organisation (RO)

1. Requesting organisation should be registered with the National Trust.
2. Should have a valid registration under the PwD Act 1995.
3. Should have a minimum of 2 years of experience of working with Persons with Disabilities (PwDs), with at least one year in one of the four disabilities under the National Trust Act.
4. NGO should not be blacklisted at the time of enrolment by the National Trust or any other government organization.

Eligibility Criteria

This section specifies the eligibility criteria for ROs to apply for opening a Disha Centre and also for PwDs in the age group of 0-10 years to be enrolled in a Disha Centre.

I. Eligibility criteria for RO

RO should fulfill the following eligibility criteria to enroll for the Disha scheme:

2. Criteria for Persons with Disabilities (PwDs)

1. Age group 0-10 years.
2. With any one of the disabilities covered under the National Trust Act.
3. Should not have been registered under the Samarth Scheme.

ii. Eligibility criteria for PwD

Following are the eligibility criteria that a PwD should meet to be enrolled in a Disha Centre (whether funded by the National Trust or not):

• a. PwD should be in the age group of 0-10 years.
• b. PwD should have one of the disabilities covered under the National Trust Act, 1999, which are Autism, Cerebral Palsy, Mental Retardation, and Multiple Disabilities.
• c. PwD should not be registered under the Samarth scheme.

Enrolment Process for Registered Organisations (ROs) and Persons with Disabilities (PwDs)

1. Enrolment Process for Registered Organisations (ROs)
2. Enrolment Process for Persons with Disabilities (PwDs)

1. Enrolment Process for Registered Organisations (ROs)

1. Fill up the Disha application form online and upload the scanned documents as required*
2. Submit the duly filled in form on the National Trust portal
3. Pay the application fees of Rs.1000 online
4. Send the printout of the filled form along with the supporting documents to the National Trust within 7 days, so that it reaches the National Trust office within 15 days.

RO Enrolment (first approval) process

RO enrolment process defines the steps to be followed while enrolling for Disha Centre for the first time. It also details out the required information and documents at each step and timelines for various activities wherever applicable.

STEP 1. The NGO registered with the National Trust logs in to the National Trust website

STEP 2. The application form is available online on the National Trust website and has to be submitted online only. Application fees for enrolment in the Disha scheme is INR 1000/-.

STEP 3. After the National Trust receives the application form and the documents, these are verified and then physical verification is initiated. However, if there is more information required from the RO, the RO is given 15 days’ time to submit the same.

Note that the documents related to physical verification of the RO and proposed Disha Centre can be submitted either at the time of enrolment for the scheme at the National Trust website or even after the online application form has been submitted. In case the RO fails to submit the same on time, the RO would be given 15 days’ time to submit the same after the RO receives the notification from the National Trust.

STEP 4. The final decision on the application or proposal is taken after completing all necessary formalities and processes. Based on the physical verification report, if the RO meets scheme criteria and requirements, the application is approved. In case there is any discrepancy, RO is accordingly informed.

STEP 5. Communication to RO by the National Trust shall be done within 15 days from the point of receipt. In case of online form, point of receipt is the date and time of submission of online form along with all the required documents. However, if there is any missing information, the National Trust has to communicate to RO within 10 days from receipt of online submission.

STEP 6. In case the hardcopy of the form and other documents is not received within 15 days of online point of receipt, the National Trust has to send a communication back to RO within 10 days of the prescribed deadline (which is within 25 days from point of receipt).

STEP 7. After the enrolment is completed, a scheme ID is created for the RO, and the confirmation for the same is communicated to RO.

STEP 8. A starter kit/Disha handbook containing the complete details of the Disha scheme is also handed over to the RO by the National Trust.

STEP 9. The National Trust to begin the fund disbursement process for providing setup cost to the ROs.

The National Trust should proactively reach out to the NGOs or ROs who had earlier approached for the Aspiration scheme. The process for registration of Disha scheme remains the same as explained above.

II. Enrolment Process for Registered Organisations (ROs) and Persons with Disabilities (PwDs)

Enrolment of PwD at the Disha Centre

STEP 1. PwD comes to the centre with the required proof

STEP 2. The Disha centre conducts a PwD Assessment Test with the help of a Therapist or Counsellor

a) In case the PwD is fit to attend school, the parents are provided guidance and counselling in terms of general care, details of special schools or regular schools, and other schemes of the National Trust that can be availed for the PwD. In case the parents are interested in sending the children to regular school or special school and not to the Disha Centre, they may exit from the process.

b) In case the parents want to send the PwD to the Disha Centre (either along with going to school, or not) even if he is fit to attend school, or in cases where the child is not fit to attend regular classes as per the Assessment Test, proceed to the next step.

STEP 3. In case of enrolling PwD in the Disha Centre, a check is made by the concerned RO on whether the PwD is applicable for the LIG or BPL funding by the National Trust. The National Trust shall generally fund on the basis of information provided by the RO. However, the National Trust reserves the right to verify this through other sources, if required.

STEP 4. Parents or guardians are required to bring the Enrolment Form along with the originals and photocopies of the following documents. The documents and records for each PwD are to be maintained in separate files by RO.

Documents required to be brought by Parents or guardians for enrolment in a Disha Centre are:
a) Enrolment form
b) Birth Certificate or Date of Birth proof of the PwD
c) Disability Certificate
d) BPL certificate or Income certificate of Parent or Guardian issued by competent authority as authorized by the concerned State/Union Territory (for LIG or BPL family)
e) ID proof of parent or guardian
f) Residence (Local) proof (Mandatory in case of LIG parent or guardian or for parents of PwD availing transport facility)

STEP 5. After successful verification of all the above furnished documents, the PwD is enrolled at the Disha Centre – a confirmation Enrolment ID card/receipt is handed over to the parents or guardians, along with a starter kit. Details about the schedule of the centre, starting date, rules and regulations, etc., should be explained to parents or guardians by the Disha representatives.

STEP 6. Parents and guardians of PwD should be given a detailed insight on the Niramaya health insurance scheme by the Disha representatives, in case the former has not yet availed the same. Disha representatives can assist with the registration of the PwD under the Niramaya scheme if the parents or guardians are interested in the same.