Amritsar, December 3

In order to make its students understand the meaning of disability, a city-based school, Spring Dale Senior School, is observing World Disability Week, which commenced from Monday. The School is observing the week under its 'Walking in their Shoes' initiative.

School students Class III to IX and Class XI will be stepping into the shoes of special children to bat for inclusive education during the week long celebration. Classes X and XII students will attend seminars and activities sensitising to disabilities.

Observed annually as The United Nations International Day of Persons with Disabilities (IDPD), on December 3, an attempt for fostering inclusiveness of differenly-abled people Sahapedia is organising a series of multi-city events. 

It started with Kolkata on November 30 wherein West Bengal’s tradition of Beni Putul or glove puppetry demonstration was held. This was helmed by puppeteer Basanta Ghorai and was curated for people with hearing disabilities.

India is a nation that ranks second in the list of the worlds most densly populated countries out of which a part of this demographic consists of people with special needs. We have the highest population of visually impared people in the world. According to Disabled Population In India Census 2011, out of the 121 Cr population, 2.68 Cr persons are disabled which is 2.21% of the total population. Among the disabled population 56% (1.5 Cr) are males and 44% (1.18 Cr ) are females. 

“ART IS MY favourite subject,” Nattinan Dankratok, a Mathayom-4 student at Kanlayanawat School in Khon Kaen province, said.

However, after she lost her eyesight, she has been spending her art classes learning braille, while here classmates get their hands dirty learning about art.
 

Brightly coloured paintings and jars made of papier mache line the shelf at the back of the classroom. 

“Most visually impaired students cannot fully participate in art classes,” Onanong Ritruechai, art lecturer at Khon Kaen University (KKU), said.

Learning photography has made these visually impaired children more confident at an early age. Express Parenting met fashion photographer Richa Maheshwari, who is helping these kids express their love for photography, fuelled by the desire to be seen on social media.

Children at National Association for the blind are being taught the art of photography.