What university is like when your eyes don't work well

I have been in and out of hospitals more times than I can remember, having eye tests and trying to find ways to improve my ability to see. It was not that I am blind, but rather I can't see as much detail and as far as other people. But my eye problems never stopped my parents believing I could be independent. In the classroom, I had to sit near the board and use magnifying tools supplied by the National Council for the Blind of Ireland (NCBI). Around the age of 10, I started learning touch-typing and braille.

CNIB helps with life skills

Gary Sandhu lost his eyesight over night two months away from his 16th birthday in 1998.

It took about eight hours for the sudden inflammation of his optic nerves to take 100 per cent of sight from his left eye and 95 per cent of sight from his right.

Ideas that change life

Bhimavarappu Mouli Aravind lost his eyesight at a young age but he found a way to pursue legal studies at National University of Juridical Sciences (NUJS), Kolkata

Braille isn't 'embattled' – we're on the cusp of a golden age for blind people

Far from heralding the death of a great medium, technology may be ushering in a new era of access and greater independence Imagine a situation where you walk into your favourite restaurant and ask for the menu, only to be told it isn't available. Chances are it wouldn't stay your favourite for very long.

As a braillist – someone who uses braille – the dream for me is when the opposite happens. A small number of chain restaurants offer menus in braille; sometimes, they're even up to date.

Disabled to have easier entry to DU

Delhi University's decision to allow vocational subjects to be counted in the best-of-four percentages will benefit many disabled applicants. Officials at DU's Equal Opportunity Cell, which facilitates admissions for reserved categories say these subjects were included earlier as well, but only after much negotiation with college authorities. Now that vocational subjects have the official DU nod for all categories, the reserved PwD group (persons with disability) should face fewer hassles.

Shahnaz Husain celebrated Mother's Day at an event organised for the visually challenged students in Delhi

The recent Mother's Day turned out to be a special one for beauty expert Shahnaz Husain, who, along with her daughter Nelofar Currimbhoy, celebrated it at a mall with the students of ShaSight, her school for the blind. The event was organised for the visually challenged students who are a part of Shahnaz's initiative for training blind people, and 40 of them were chosen to be employed with a healthcare firm in Abu Dhabi.

Visually, hearing impaired cast break barriers in play

Four More WIPO Members Sign Marrakesh Treaty For Visually Impaired

During a signing ceremony held today at the World Intellectual Property Organization, the European Union, France, Greece and India signed the treaty adopted last June to provide a wider access to copyrighted books in special format for visually impaired people.

The Marrakesh Treaty to Facilitate Access to Published Works for Persons Who Are Blind, Visually Impaired or Otherwise Print Disabled has now been signed [pdf] by 64 of WIPO’s 187 members.

EU signs treaty to facilitate access to books for visually impaired person

The European Union will Wednesday sign the Marrakesh Treaty to facilitate access to published works for persons who are blind or visually impaired.

The treaty will ensure that books in formats such as Braille, large print, e-books and audio books with special navigation tools can be exchanged across borders not only within the EU but also between the EU and third countries, said an EU statement.