Abstract

Despite progressive legislation and ambitious national targets for inclusive education, the enrollment of tribal girls with disabilities in India remains critically low. While sociocultural factors influence access to schooling, structural constraints and policy implementation failures constitute the most immediate and decisive barriers. This paper examines systemic impediments to inclusive education for tribal girls with disabilities, focusing on infrastructure deficits, teacher capacity gaps, distance and transport barriers, and uneven implementation of flagship education schemes. Using secondary quantitative data from UDISE+ 2024-25, Census of India 2011, and government implementation reports, the study analyzes enrollment disparities, district-level infrastructure gaps, and gendered dropout patterns. The paper further presents five-year enrollment projections under alternative intervention scenarios and conducts an indicative cost-benefit assessment of integrated policy responses. Findings suggest that accessible toilets, ramps, assistive devices, trained special educators, and transport facilities are severely inadequate in tribal districts, contributing to persistently high exclusion rates. Scenario-based projections indicate that combined interventions could raise enrollment of girls with disabilities from 0.91% to 2.68% within five years, approaching National Education Policy 2030 targets. Estimated social returns substantially exceed projected public investment, indicating that inclusive education is not only a rights-based obligation but also a fiscally prudent development strategy.