Several organisations for children and individuals with disabilities are feeling the heat of the closure of schools for the past 18 months with fees not coming in on time, students dropping out and donations dipping.
At least two organisations said the number of students had reduced to half during the pandemic and the withdrawal from online education has been prompted by the limitation of the system that demands parental support.
At least one organisation said that if this situation continues, they would be forced to shut down because it was increasingly difficult to meet the cost of teachers’ salaries, electricity costs and annual maintenance charges.
“If parents are struggling economically because of a loss of job or a bereavement in the family because of Covid, the immediate impact is on children with disabilities,” said Chaitali Gami, the secretary of South Calcutta Parasmoni.
In a situation like this, it is school for students with disabilities or their activities that can get disrupted and that is what has happened during the pandemic, she said.
Psychologist Ishita Sanyal, who runs Turning Point, said fresh admissions had taken a hit.
“Fresh admissions have reduced to almost 10 per cent of what it was before the pandemic,” said Sanyal.
Many parents have gone back to work and cannot be expected to sit with their children for online class, said Gami. Changing the timing does not always help either, she said.
The dwindling numbers are impacting the cost of running these institutes.
“We cater to parents from middle and lower-middle income groups and before the pandemic, we could at least raise the running cost but now we are in deficit. If this continues, we will be forced to shut down in a couple of months,” said Bratati Choudhury of Chinsurah Sense Society.
Some of the institutes are smaller organisations who largely depend on fees and partly on donations.
The pandemic is making it difficult for people to donate like they did before as businesses have taken a hit, too.
Some of the organisations are making appeals to friends or members but are not sure of the sustainability of this.
“Most of the big donors are directing their funds towards Covid relief and we have to rely on close friends, which is not enough to run organisations,” said Dipa Banerjee, principal of Mentaid Special School.
Heads are concerned about retaining teachers and therapists.
“How much are teachers expected to compromise if they are not paid commensurate with their services?” said Gami.
“The work of teachers has doubled because of online classes,” said Sanyal.
Banerjee said that expenses were rising.
“About 50 per cent of our students are from underprivileged families and we have to provide a section of them with smart phones and recharge facilities so that they can continue with classes. We do not want to stop the therapy for them,” she said.