Born blind in Bagalkot city of Karnataka, 23-year-old Vinayak Neelanayak dreams of becoming a Biotechnology Engineer. Like most students with vision impairment, he has braved many odds to pursue his interest in Science.

Our ill-equipped education system makes it difficult for blind students to follow subjects like Maths and Science, often encouraging them to opt out. Vinayak’s school refused to let him sit through Class 12 and he struggled for three years until he found admission elsewhere. His persistence paid off and he scored 75% in the finals.

Coronavirus has altered the existing scenarios. As the world grapples with change, blind people are faced with new set of difficulties. A long-term associate of Eyeway, Praveen Kumar shares what it means to be visually impaired in today’s times.

As a visually impaired person, being independent has been my priority in life. Now with the situation of corona there is going to be a change in my life and also for many others with vision impairment.

Rohit and his wife are both blind. Growing up as orphans, they didn’t get much chance at proper education. Rohit made a living by selling things and offering massage to commuters on Mumbai’s local trains.  They were blessed with a baby in mid-March but the childbirth brought more woes than happiness.
Unemployed during the lockdown, Rohit struggled to arrange for food and pay rent. He pleaded with his landlord to make an exception for a few months, until he started earning again. But the house owner was indifferent and insensitive to their issues.

Although both central and state governments have announced welfare schemes and helplines for people to contact during the lockdown, for most people, relief isn’t easy to come by.

Maharashtra being one among the worst hit states by Covid19, Eyeway Helpdesk has received hundreds of calls from visually impaired people from various districts, struggling with daily existence.