Antarchakshu: an Initiative to Open the Eyes of the Sighted to the World of Visually Challenged
“I have learned that people will forget
what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget
how you made them feel” said poet Maya Angellou.
And this is what Antarchakshu seeks to
do through a programme aimed at sensitizing the general public as well policy
makers about the issues related to the mainstreaming of the visually
challenged. In a novel initiative
Antarakshu seeks to engages people from all walks of life in different activities
and tasks blindfolded for about half an hour to open the eyes of the sighted to
the world of the visually challenged. The aim of this awareness programme is to
remove the prejudices, myths and misconceptions about the capabilities of the
visually challenged with or without technical aides in the areas of education
and employment and financial transactions and give them firsthand experience of
the challenges that confront the visually handicapped
The unique event developed by Xavier’s
Resource centre for the Visually Challenged
was not inaugurated by the cutting of the ribbons or lighting of the
lamps but the Minister for Social Justice and Empowerment Mukul Wasnik to engage in all these activities and tasks
blindfolded to get a firsthand experience and insight into the challenges faced
by visually handicapped.
What are the problems that the visually
challenged face in day to day life? The first challenge is their mobility.
Visually handicapped Harish Kumar has to commute daily from his home across
Yamuna in Shivpuri to Blind Relief Association on Mathura Road in Delhi where
he makes candles for a living. Many a times he and hundreds like him stranded
for long hours at bus stands as they are unable to make out which bus number
has arrived. They have to depend on good Samaritans to help them cross the
road. Many roads do not have pavements and even if there are pavements, the
hurdles or open pits are a big hindrance themselves. Also pavements are not
only encroached, but in peak hours of traffic, the scooters and motor cycles
drivers break all rules to use the pavements. While the visually challenged
have a white cane to find their way isn’t there a need for barrier free
environment for the differently abled people?
Why not put yourself in the situation of a visually
challenged for a while. The first activity at Antarchakshu for the sighted is
to walk on an uneven and obstacle-ridden simulated footpath blindfolded with a
white cane and the sounds to guide your way. Once you do it yourself you know
what the difficulties are and become aware of the need for creating barrier
free environment. In many countries beepers are used signaling green light for
the vehicles or the pedestrians. While the accessibility of Delhi Metro
stations as well as the announcements on the running metro about coming
stations are disabled friendly, but the problem says Harish is that many visually challenged prefer buses because they
get free passes but there are no
facilities for announcement about stations or arrival of a bus for a particular
destination at the bus stops.
The handling of money and financial transactions is
another problem that the visually challenged confront. So in another activity
the blindfolded person has to identify the value of the coins. This is to
highlight that the visually challenged should be able to identify the values of
the coin by feeling the thickness or the size of the coin. An exhibition also
highlights the need for paper currency of different values to be of different
sizes.
In fact RBI in its programme of incusing
banking has asked banks to open talking
ATMs and make them accessible to other differently abled to use this facility.
NCR Corporation, India’s largest ATM service provider, is all set to transform
over 2,500 State Bank of India (SBI) ATMs to Voice-Guided ATMs -- which not
only allows access to visually impaired people but also people with physical
disabilities through ramps for wheel chair access. SBI’s first ‘real’ ATM for
the visually impaired was showcased at the awareness event organized by
Xavier's Research Centre for the Visually Challenged (XRCVC) at Jawaharlal
Nehru University in Delhi.
NCR’s ‘Talking ATMs’ are incorporated with unique
software and hardware features which ensures that a person with a disability
can operate the machine on his own, while maintaining the safety of the
transaction.
Another set of activities at the event are aimed at
removing the misconception, myths and prejudices on the areas of education and
employability of visually challenged
whether it is studying geography or science subjects. As you go through the
simulating activities blindfolded you know whether it is calculations, or
identifying places on tactical maps or differentiating between plastics or metals or other kinds of
materials or identifying files or
working on computers the visually challenged can do all this with certain
changes in the design or production of the gadgets or software’s. The whole
effort is to show that with little imaginative and innovative ways and with the
help of the technical aides, a visually challenged person can get into areas of
education and employment which were earlier thought out of bounds for them.
Even today most of the visually
challenged are engaged in candle making, caning
or similar activities. The employers and educational institutes need to
understand that the capabilities of the visually challenged are manifold and
these should be put to use optimally.
One of the activity showed how with little
innovations games can be made accessible to the visually challenged by using
sound as a tool and how some games like chess can be played between the sighted
and visually challenged partners with little change in the design.
Once the sighted, employers and the policy makers
are sensitized through such programmes, there is bound to be a change in their
attitude and perception which ultimately can help in mainstreaming of the
differently abled and that is what Antarchakshu activities are aimed at.
Going by the 2001 census figures, there were 1.06
crore visually challenged in country, and their present number may be much
more.
The government has been taking a number of
initiatives to mainstream the differently abled. It is also now coming out with
a new law on disability which ensures the right of equality, non discrimination
and inclusivity to the differently abled. The draft has been made public and
the centre is awaiting the response of the states before bringing it in the
parliament. The Right to Education also says that no school can deny admission
to a differently abled child. But today even the most basic of necessities like
white cane and text book in Braille and are not available to all and there is
also an acute shortage of trained teachers.
There is a long journey ahead before the differently
abled are mainstreamed into the society, with the NGO s joining the government
efforts and people shedding their prejudices and old attitudes, the dream of
inclusive society can be accomplished.
No comments:
Post a Comment