India suffers from a significant shortage of donor corneas along with a waiting period of over six months for corneal transplants among patients suffering from corneal blindness across the country. Blindness maybe a result of several conditions like cataract, refractive error, glaucoma, age-related macular degeneration, diabetic retinopathy and corneal blindness that stands as the 4th leading cause of blindness across the world.
Our weekly #TechThursday feature is on a new device by a China-based company that aims to improve quality of life for visually impaired people by making navigation easier. Navigation apart, the device will also make comprehensive scene perception easier.
China-based CloudMinds Technologies Inc has come up with a device that aims to make navigation easier for visually impaired people. The device uses a new deep learning-powered wearable assistive system.
Today on Teachers Day we start a month-long campaign called #ThankYouTeacher on teachers who are making a difference to the lives of people with disabilities. Our first story is on three teachers in Bengaluru. Common Admission Test (CAT) and banking entrance exams can be hard to crack for visually impaired aspirants given the multiple barriers in school and college. Srilatha Yegneshwar, Satyavani Vempati and Mamata Mutt are helping to break that glass ceiling.
Ludo and Snakes and Ladders are board games that many children love to play. Thanks to heritage architect and access consultant Siddhant Shah, these games can now be played by children who are blind and low vision as well.
Games period has now become cause for much excitement at the Kamla Mehta Blind School in Dadar, Mumbai. Everyday you find students gathered around a table playing Snakes and Ladders, Ludo, X&O to name a few.
TogetherWeCan, a prominent parents support group in Kerala recently sent a petition to the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) highlighting the plight of students with disabilities in schools and the need for an inclusive educational environment. Both CBSE and state government run schools in Kerala have not rightly implemented the RPWD Act, 2016 which is clear violation of laws. This is our focus on #StoryOfTheWeek.
In My Take this week, we have Ajay Kumar Reddy, Captain of India's Blind Cricket team. Along with following his passion for cricket, this 29 year old works as the Assistant Manager for a leading national bank.
Scientists from Switzerland and Italy are working on a technology for blind people that will bypass the eyeball directly and transmit visual signals. Called OpticSELINE, the technology has been successfully tested on rabbits.
Divyang or Disabled? Person with autism or autistic? World over, the disability sector is divided on the correct terminology and as Monika Kshatriya, member of Goa-based advocacy group, iDare points out, the debate should lead us in India to seriously think about the need to develop an inclusive language.
Across the disability sector, the house is divided on politically correct terminology or Inclusive Language. Not just over terms that are usable but whether we must stress on it at all considering that there are far bigger issues to deal with.
Disability is often overlooked in the quest for wokeness.
Race, class, gender, sexual orientation are often more readily apparent than disability, carry far less stigma, are a lot sexier and even come with a rainbow! It makes sense to pay attention to disability, though: it’s powerful intersection between all things (race, class, gender, sexual orientation), and of course, is the only minority group anyone can join any day.
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