The Rehabilitation Council of India (RCI) was set up as a registered society in 1986. On September, 1992 the RCI Act was enacted by Parliament and it became a Statutory Body on 22 June 1993. The Act was amended by Parliament in 2000 to make it more broadbased. The mandate given to RCI is to regulate and monitor services given to persons with disability, to standardise syllabi and to maintain a Central Rehabilitation Register of all qualified professionals and personnel working in the field of Rehabilitation and Special Education. The Act also prescribes punitive action against unqualified persons delivering services to persons with disability.
For more info, log on to: http://www.rehabcouncil.nic.in/
The Rehabilitation Council of India (RCI) is the apex government body, set up under an Act of Parliament, to regulate training programmes and courses targeted at disabled, disadvantaged, and special education requirement communities. It is the only statutory council in India that is required to maintain the Central Rehabilitation Register which mainly documents details of all qualified professionals who operate and deliver training and educational programmes for the targeted communities. In the year 2000, the Rehabilitation Council of India (Amendment) Act, 2000, was introduced and notified consequently by the government of India. The amendment brought definitions and discussions provided within the earlier Rehabilitation Council of India Act, 1992, under the ambit of a larger act, namely, Persons with Disabilities (Equal Opportunities, Protection of Rights and Full Participation) Act, 1995.
Professionals who can apply for RCI accreditation
As per RCI, the following categories of professionals can apply for RCI's accreditation process. (To apply, the requirement is specifically that the professionals be providing services targeted towards communities for which RCI has been set up)
Prosthetists and Orthotists
Audiologists and Speech Therapists
Clinical Psychologists
Rehabilitation Counsellors, Administrators
Rehabilitation Workshop Managers
Rehabilitation Psychologists
Rehabilitation Social Workers
Rehabilitation Practitioners in Mental Retardation
Speech Pathologists
Special Teachers for Educating and Training the Handicapped
Vocational Counsellors, Employment Officers and Placement Officers
Multi-purpose Rehabilitation Therapists, Technicians
Orientation and Mobility Specialists
Community Based Rehabilitation Professionals
Hearing and Ear Mould Technicians
Rehabilitation Engineers and Technicians
The council has reportedly registered around 12,000 such professionals across India.