LUCKNOW, June 9 -- The two-year BEd special education course at Dr Shakuntala Mishra National Rehabilitation University, Lucknow has been extended to a 4-year course from 2026-27 academic session. The decision was taken following guidelines issued by Rehabilitation Council of India, New Delhi, at the academic council meeting held under the chairmanship of the vice-chancellor Acharya Sanjay Singh of the University here on Sunday. Also, the faculty of special education of the university has been renamed as faculty of education and it was decided to merge four departments operating under the faculty of special education, department of education, department for the visually handicapped, department for the hearing handicapped and department of intellectual disability, into a department of education. The restructured department of education will now offer specialisations in visual impairment, hearing impairment, and intellectual disability. The decision to rename the faculty was made in accordance with University Grants Commission (UGC) regulations, which do not recognise a separate faculty of special education, the university spokesperson said. The nomenclature of the PhD degree conducted under the faculty of special education has also been revised. Going forward, the degree will be awarded as PhD education- special education. Previously, it was conferred under separate titles such as PhD special education (visually impaired), PhD special education (hearing impaired), and PhD special education id (intellectual disability). Instructions were also issued for the implementation of ability enhancement courses, value added courses, multidisciplinary courses, and skill enhancement courses in accordance with the provisions of the University's Graduation Regulation 2024. These guidelines align with the credit and curriculum framework for undergraduate programs issued by the University Grants Commission (UGC), New Delhi. At the undergraduate level, students across all faculties will be required to take an ability enhancement course in English language and communication during the first and second semesters. In the third and fourth semesters, they must choose an ability enhancement course in either Hindi language and communication or Sanskrit language and communication....