Training Centres for Persons with Special Abilities, Mizoram
Mizoram state government scheme
Training Centres for Persons with Special Abilities are 3 state-funded vocational centres in Mizoram offering 1-year courses in tailoring and shoemaking to persons with disabilities, with a monthly stipend of Rs 700 during training and a free sewing machine or set of cobbler tools on completion. Admission is through the Directorate of Social Welfare, Aizawl.
What are the Training Centres for Persons with Special Abilities?
Training Centres for Persons with Special Abilities are vocational training institutions run by the Social Welfare & Tribal Affairs Department, Government of Mizoram, through its Directorate of Social Welfare in Aizawl. They are listed on the department's site under the heading Training Centre for Specially-Abled Persons, and the fund source recorded against them is the Government of Mizoram, this is a state scheme, not a centrally sponsored one.
The idea behind the centres is narrow and unusually concrete. Rather than handing out a cash benefit, the state trains a person with a disability in a single practical trade for one full year, pays a monthly stipend while they train so the household is not worse off for the time spent, and then gives them the equipment they need to work with the moment they finish. A trainee who completes tailoring walks out with a sewing machine; one who completes shoemaking walks out with cobbler tools.
There are three centres in Mizoram:
- A residential training centre at Aizawl for male trainees.
- A residential training centre at Aizawl for female trainees.
- A non-residential centre at Lunglei.
The Aizawl residential arrangement is run as the Residential Institute of Training Centre (RITC) at Durtlang under the Directorate of Social Welfare.
What courses and benefits does a trainee get?
Courses. The department lists one-year vocational courses:
- Tailoring, available to female trainees and to male trainees.
- Shoemaking, available to male trainees.
Stipend. A monthly stipend is paid throughout the training period. The department's dedicated scheme page, last updated on 20 July 2026, records the stipend as Rs 700 per month. The department's consolidated Schemes on Disability page, last updated on 15 July 2026, still shows Rs 250 a month. These two official pages disagree, and the more recently updated page carries the higher figure. Anyone budgeting around the stipend should confirm the current rate with the Directorate of Social Welfare before enrolling.
Toolkit on completion. This is the part that determines whether the training converts into a livelihood. On completing the course, a trainee receives one of the following free of cost:
- a hand sewing machine, or
- a treadle sewing machine, or
- a set of cobbler tools.
Board and lodging. Trainees at the two Aizawl centres are accommodated residentially for the duration of the course. Lunglei trainees attend daily and live at home.
Who is eligible for the Mizoram training centres?
The department does not publish a numbered eligibility clause for these centres. What the scheme page and the wider disability-affairs practice of the Directorate establish is the following.
You can be admitted if:
- You are a person with a disability, certified by the competent medical authority. The Directorate of Social Welfare and the Health & Family Welfare Department jointly run assessment and certification camps across Mizoram precisely so that people in remote locations can be certified.
- You live in Mizoram.
- You can complete a one-year course and, for the Aizawl centres, live at the centre for that period.
- Your disability is compatible with the trade, tailoring and shoemaking are both close, seated, fine-motor trades.
- Seats are available in the centre and trade you are applying for. Capacity at three centres is limited.
You cannot apply if:
- You do not hold a disability certificate. Certification is the gateway to every disability scheme in Mizoram, and the centres are no exception.
- You are not a resident of Mizoram.
- You are seeking a trade the centres do not run. Only tailoring and shoemaking are offered; for IT, retail or hospitality trades the department points people to the PM-DAKSH portal of the Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities.
- You want a cash grant rather than training. The State Economic Rehabilitation Scheme, which gives a one-time grant-in-aid to destitute or invalid persons and persons with disabilities, is the appropriate route there; though the department states openly that its funds are limited and assistance cannot be extended to all applicants.
What documents are required?
| Document | Mandatory | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Disability certificate | Yes | From the competent medical authority, or obtained at an assessment and certification camp |
| UDID card | Yes | Applied for at swavlambancard.gov.in through the District Medical Superintendent's office |
| Residence proof | Yes | Voter ID, ration card, or a VCP or LC Chairman certificate |
| Passport photographs | Yes | For the admission record and trainee register |
| Bank passbook | No | For stipend transfer where paid electronically |
The Unique Disability Identity (UDID) card deserves a note. It was launched in 2017 to build a national database of persons with disabilities and has replaced the old state-issued disability ID card entirely — holders of the previous Mizoram card are required to apply afresh online. Every District Medical Superintendent's office in Mizoram is equipped to process the application. As of 15 July 2026 the department had issued 7,648 UDIDs in Mizoram.
How to apply for admission to a training centre
- Get certified. If you do not already hold a disability certificate, attend an assessment and certification camp in your area or approach the District Medical Superintendent's office. Without certification nothing else proceeds.
- Apply for your UDID card at swavlambancard.gov.in through the District Medical Superintendent's office, and keep a printout or the digital card.
- Contact your District Social Welfare Officer (DSWO) and ask when admissions for the Training Centres for Persons with Special Abilities open and which trade and centre has seats. DSWOs are posted at Aizawl, Lunglei, Champhai, Siaha and Mamit among other districts, and they are the department's field channel for every disability scheme.
- Submit your application with the disability certificate, UDID card, residence proof and photographs, either through the DSWO or directly to the Directorate of Social Welfare, Aizawl. For the Aizawl residential centre, the i/c Superintendent of RITC handles admission at 9862377426.
- Attend the selection or counselling step if the department calls one. Because there are only three centres, selection is made against available seats and the suitability of the trade to the applicant.
- Join the course and complete the full one year. The stipend is paid monthly through the training period, and the toolkit is handed over only on completion.
How this fits with Mizoram's other disability schemes
The Directorate of Social Welfare runs the training centres alongside a set of cash and service schemes it is worth knowing about, because a trainee may qualify for more than one:
- State Disability Pension; Rs 500 a month, paid to 200 severely disabled or totally bedridden persons with disabilities.
- Handicapped Students Stipend, Rs 800 a year up to Class IV, Rs 1,000 a year for Classes V to VII, and Rs 2,500 a year for Classes VIII to XII. Lists are called for from schools and forwarded by the District Social Welfare Officers.
- Stipend to Educated Unemployed Persons with Disabilities: Rs 3,000 a year for those registered with the Special Employment Exchange, shortlisted by a screening committee.
- State Economic Rehabilitation Scheme. A one-time grant-in-aid to destitute or invalid persons and persons with disabilities.
- Braille Press at the Saizahawla State Social Welfare Multipurpose Centre, Tanhril, Aizawl, established in November 2022 with NIEPVD funding and now funded by the state. It had printed 1,144 books by 2026, including Braille textbooks for MBSE, SCERT, college Equal Opportunity Cells and Braille ballot papers for the Chief Electoral Officer.
- Rehabilitation Home for Persons Cured of Mental Illness at Ainawn, Aizawl; functional since 25 July 2023, capacity 10, currently female residents only, admission by psychiatrist referral.
Where to get help
- Directorate of Social Welfare, Government of Mizoram, Aizawl.
- i/c Superintendent, RITC Durtlang: 9862377426.
- Commissioner, Persons with Disabilities, Mizoram: 0389-2399213.
- District Social Welfare Officers: Lunglei 9862303171, Champhai 9862790154, Siaha 9538412398, Mamit 9436360326, Aizawl East and West 9774394454.
- Grievances can be lodged through the Public Grievance link on socialwelfare.mizoram.gov.in or on the central CPGRAMS portal.
Admission, training, the stipend and the toolkit are all free. No fee is charged, and no agent can secure a seat at any of the three centres.
Documents required
Frequently asked questions
What courses do the Mizoram Training Centres for Persons with Special Abilities offer?
The centres run one-year vocational courses — tailoring for female trainees, and tailoring and shoemaking for male trainees. Both are trades a graduate can practise from home or a small shop with the toolkit the centre gives on completion.
How many training centres are there and where?
There are three. Two are residential centres at Aizawl, one for male and one for female trainees, and the third is a non-residential centre at Lunglei. The residential centre in Aizawl operates as the Residential Institute of Training Centre (RITC) at Durtlang.
Is there a stipend during the training?
Yes. The Directorate of Social Welfare's scheme page states a monthly stipend of Rs 700 is paid to trainees for the duration of their training. An older figure of Rs 250 a month still appears on the department's consolidated Schemes on Disability page, so confirm the current rate with the Directorate before you enrol.
What do trainees receive when they finish the course?
Trainees receive a toolkit on completion — a hand sewing machine or a treadle sewing machine for tailoring graduates, or a set of cobbler tools for shoemaking graduates. The toolkit is given free and is the point of the whole exercise, because it lets the graduate start earning immediately.
Who is not eligible for the training centres?
People without a disability certificate are not eligible, because the centres are reserved for persons with disabilities. Someone who is not resident in Mizoram cannot apply, and someone whose disability makes the residential arrangement or the trade physically unsuitable may be advised towards a different scheme such as the State Economic Rehabilitation Scheme or PM-DAKSH.
Who runs these centres?
The Social Welfare & Tribal Affairs Department, Government of Mizoram runs them through the Directorate of Social Welfare, and the department's own page records the fund source as the Government of Mizoram. These are state schemes, not centrally sponsored ones.
What other help is available for persons with disabilities in Mizoram?
Mizoram runs a State Disability Pension of Rs 500 a month for 200 severely disabled or bedridden persons, a Handicapped Students Stipend of Rs 800 to Rs 2,500 a year by class, a stipend of Rs 3,000 a year for educated unemployed persons with disabilities registered with the Special Employment Exchange, a State Economic Rehabilitation Scheme paying a one-time grant, and a Braille Press at Tanhril that had printed 1,144 titles by 2026.
See all Mizoram Persons with Disabilities Welfare Department schemes →
Schemes in other states
Official forms & downloads
Links to official government PDFs and portals for this scheme.
Official government portal — click to visit
Didn't find what you needed?
Browse all Mizoram schemes, or the central government schemes open to every state.