Samvedna was established in 2010 by a broad coalition of health focused NGOs, after it was identified that although there were many health and education programs established for the able-bodied population, those with disabilities were severely disadvantaged in their ability to access even the most basic health and education services.

The Samvedna program has benefitted from its central involvement in the Uttarakhand Cluster: a network of 47 NGOs who have chosen to focus on disability as a key health issue. As part of the Cluster, Samvedna has facilitated the development of expertise and resources to improve disability services in the region.

In December 2012 Samvedna opened its first learning centre where children with a disability have been able to receive special education, physical therapy, life skills education, prevocational and daily living training. For those children who are unable to be mainstreamed into the regular education system, this facility provides a positive learning environment in which they can gain important literacy skills to support them to thrive. This is the model that Samvedna seeks to scale up over coming years