Oration Awards
Reeta Peshawaria Oration Award
The Reeta Peshawaria Oration Award was instituted by Dr. Desh Keerti Menon in memory of his wife in the year 2013 in joint collaboration with the National Institute for Empowerment of Persons with Intellectual Disability (NIEPID), Hyderabad. This prestigious award was managed by NIEPID from the years 2013 to 2022. It was discontinued by NIEPID in the year 2022 when no Award was given. Reeta Peshawaria Centre for Autism and ABA services took over the management of the Oration Award from the year 2023 onwards.
This prestigious Award is given annually on the recommendation of the Search and Nomination Committee constituted by the Reeta Peshawaria Autism Centre. Every year, a person of Indian origin who has made an exceptional and significant contribution in research, training, services, or advocacy in India in the field of Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities is chosen by this Committee. This Award is given away annually around the birth anniversary of Reeta on 19 November. The Oration Award consists of a Citation, a Shawl, and an Oration delivered by the Awardee at a chosen venue.
The Award function is organized in joint collaboration with our partners Manovikas Charitable Society, New Delhi. (For more information, click this link)
The year wise List of Awardees is given below:
- 2013: Prof. P. Jeyachandran
- 2014: Prof. Jayanthi Narayan
- 2015: Prof. Pratibha Karanth
- 2016: Dr. Madhvi Latha
- 2017: Prof. Saroj Arya
- 2018: Dr. A.T. Thressiakutty
- 2019: Mrs. Merry Barua
- 2020: Mrs. Aloka Guha
- 2021: Dr. Sharda Fatehpuria
- 2022: (Award discontinued by NIEPID)
Since 2023, the Reeta Peshawaria Autism Centre, Mallapally took over the administration of the award:
- 2023: Dr. Amarjyothi Persha
- 2024: Ms. VRP Sheilaja Rao
2013 Awardee Prof. P. Jeyachandran
A pioneer in Special Education and Disability Services
Prof. P. Jeyachandran was a pioneering psychologist whose work in the field of intellectual and developmental disabilities had a profound impact on special education and disability rehabilitation in India. In 1977, Prof. Jeyachandran founded Vijay Human Services in Chennai, an organisation that started the first Diploma course in Special Education in India. In 1992, Prof. Jeyachandran developed the Madras Developmental Programming System, an adapted behaviour Scale for assessing and programming special education for children with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Prof. Jeyachandran passed away at the age of 76. His legacy lives on through the programs and systems he created.
2014 Awardee: Prof Jayanthi Narayan
a distinguished policy planner in Special Education
Dr Jayanthi Narayan was the first Head of the Department of Special Education at NIEPID, Hyderabad. She was awarded the Reeta Peshawaria Oration Award in 2014 for her exceptional contributions in developing and running B.Ed. and M.Ed. in special education training courses affiliated to the Osmania University, the first ever in India. Dr. Narayan has written training manuals, contributed to books, and published extensively in national and international journals. She is also a course writer and editor for distance education programs. Dr. Narayan has had a substantial impact internationally, collaborating with organisations like UNICEF, UNDP, and WHO. She has led situation analyses on education for children with disabilities in Indonesia, Maldives, China, Bhutan, and Cambodia. Her consultancy and research have shaped global approaches to inclusive education. Grade level assessment tool for learning disability has been nationally recognized and published in the Gazette of India.
2015 Awardee: Prof. Pratibha Karanth
a pioneer in early intervention program
Dr. Prathibha Karanth is the Founder Director and Managing Trustee of The Communication DEALL Trust that has popularized Early Intervention program for children with autism spectrum disorders at more than two dozen centers in India. The Communication DEALL (Developmental Eclectic Approach to Language Learning) Program is a comprehensive, multidisciplinary early intervention program for children up to the age of 6 years. The program involves teams from several disciplines such as occupational therapists, physiotherapists, speech-language pathologists, developmental psychologists, and educators to address the sensory-motor, communication, cognitive, and psycho-social development of the child.
She is a Speech Language Pathologist with over 40 years of experience in several national institutions in India. She has had a long-standing interest in language disorders, both in children and adults. She has worked extensively in the areas of adult aphasias, acquired dyslexias, learning disability, specific language impairment and communication in autism/pervasive developmental disorders. Dr. Karanth has written 3 books, over 70 peer reviewed scientific papers and has presented over 250 papers at various seminars and conferences around the world.
2016 Awardee: Dr Madhvilatha Maganti
a leader in early childhood development
Dr Madhavilatha is a developmental psychologist whose work integrates behavioral and computational approaches to understand the cognitive mechanisms that underlie attentional processes and language learning in infants and children contributing to embodied models of cognition. Her work on early verb learning, involves studying the associations between body parts and actions in Telugu and Hindi children as well as native Tamil speakers. She has also built a corpus of early verbs in Telugu and collected speech samples from mother-child conversations for computational analysis of speech during infancy. Dr Madhavilatha is an Associate Professor of Psychology at Krea University, Sri City, Andhra Pradesh.
2017 Awardee: Prof, Saroj Arya
exceptional leadership in cognitive, intellectual and developmental assessment
Prof. Saroj Arya was the first Head and Associate Professor of Rehabilitation Psychology at NIEPID, Hyderabad. She is currently Professor Emeritus in Clinical Psychology at the Sweekar Academy of Rehabilitation Sciences, Secunderabad. Before joining NIEPID, Dr. Arya had carried out seminal research work on protein calorie malnutrition and cognitive development in children. She developed and led the first ever post-graduate training program in Rehabilitation Psychology leading to M.Phil. degree in Osmania University. She led the development of two nationally recognized assessment scales, NIEPID Indian test of intelligence, and Indian scale for assessment of Autism. Both these scales have been published in the Gazette of India to be used nation wide. Dr Arya was given National Award by the Govt. of India for her contribution in Rehabilitation Psychology.
2018 Awardee: Dr. A.T. Thressiakutty
a visionary in vocational training & employment
Dr. A. T. Thressia Kutty is a pioneering figure in the field of special education and disability rehabilitation, particularly in the areas of vocational training and employment for persons with intellectual and developmental disabilities. With an extensive career as a teacher, researcher, and advocate, Dr. Kutty has dedicated her life to improving the quality of life for individuals with disabilities, promoting their independence and self-advocacy. Dr. Kutty served as a Faculty at NIEPID and later at Ramakrishna Mission Vivekananda Educational and Research Institute. Throughout her career, she authored over 20 books and published several research papers on developing vocational curricula and promoting skill training for individuals with intellectual disabilities. She served as an expert member of several national committees. In 1995, she received the prestigious National Award from the President of India for her outstanding service to persons with disabilities. Dr. Thressia Kutty has always strongly advocated for the economic development, self-advocacy, and independent living of individuals with intellectual disabilities.
2019 Awardee: Mrs. Merry Barua
a visionary who shaped the narrative on autism
Mrs. Merry Barua, a mother and champion Advocate began her journey when no body amongst the policy planners and administrators in India know anything about Autism. She made sure that when legislation in India was in the making, Autism should be included as one of the disabilities under the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act. She is the Founder Director of Action for Autism, National Centre for Autism, New Delhi. She is an Activist, Trainer, and a Consultant. She has recently established Ananda Assisted Living for Autistic and other Neurodivergent Adults in Gurugram.
2020 Awardee: Mrs. Aloka Guha
a veteran advocate in disability rights and policy Development
Mrs. Aloka Guha is a highly respected leader in disability rights in India. She has expertise in intellectual disabilities and decades of experience influencing disability related policy in India. Mrs. Guha served as the Founder-Chairperson of the National Trust, an organisation dedicated to empowering and supporting individuals with disabilities in India Her international work includes collaborations with the South-East Asia Regional Office of the World Health Organization (SEARO-WHO), where she contributed to both the Disability Unit and the Mental Health Unit under the Department of Non-Communicable Diseases (NCD). She also served as a Consultant with Autism Speaks, supporting the Government of Bangladesh in developing its national-level multi-sectoral initiative on Autism and Neurodevelopmental Disorders. Earlier as Director of Spastic Society of Tamil Nadu, she led the state wide training of DPEP stake holders. DPEP was a World Bank funded centrally sponsored project to expand the opportunities for poor and disadvantage children to receive quality primary education.
2021 Awardee: Dr. Sharda Fatehpuria
a visionary founder of services in eastern India
Dr. Sharada Fatehpuria, earned her PhD in Applied Psychology in 1966. In the year 1974 Dr. Sharda Fatehpuria founded Manovikas Kendra, first institution of its kind in eastern India dedicated to empowering children with special needs. Manovikas Kendra has transformed over 10,000 lives through inclusive education, therapy, vocational training, and research. She has been known for her unwavering dedication, vision, and compassion. The teachers trained at Manovikas Kendra spread special educational services in other parts of eastern India.
2023 Awardee: Dr Amarjyothi Persha
extraordinary contributions to early intervention
The 10th Reeta Peshawaria Oration Award was given to Dr. Amar Jyothi Persha
for her extraordinary contributions to early intervention in small-for-date babies with developmental challenges. Dr. Persha is the visionary behind the RAPID model, which ensures disabilities are identified early, allowing families immediate access to essential support and resources. Dr. Persha developed and led a postgraduate University course on Early Intervention. Her highly regarded manuals on Visual Stimulation Activities for Infants & Toddlers and Kids-Play: A Pathway to Learning have become invaluable resources nationwide, empowering families and professionals. Dr. Persha firmly believed that every child should get an opportunity to thrive. Her family-centered approach has shown one of the pathways to inclusion and empowerment of children with Intellectual and developmental disabilities.
2024 Awardee: V.R.P. Sheilaja Rao
a pioneer in early childhood special education
The 11th Reeta Peshawaria Oration Award was given away by Mrs. Santhamma Panicker, Chairperson, Reeta Peshawaria Center for Autism and ABA Services, Kerala to Ms. VRP Sheilaja Rao for her outstanding work in parent support groups and inclusive education. Sheilaja has pioneered family-centred, home-based support models for children with disabilities, making individualised educational programmes and effective care accessible to families. Her collaborative model has enabled educators and care staff to make lasting and significant positive changes in the lives of persons with Intellectual and developmental disabilities.