On World Disability Day (December 3), President Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam presented the National Awards for the Welfare of Persons With Disabilities 2005. On the occasion, President Kalam asked the state governments to nominate special commissioners to ensure the selection of the right candidates, to fill up the 3 per cent reservation in jobs for disabled people. He suggested that the special commissioners could work under the supervision of the overall coordinator in the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment, Government of India.

 "Parvai Atror Kural’ has two objectives: identifying and encouraging the visually impaired writers to write stories, novels, essays etc and also help them express their grievances.

The print version of the magazine will also be made available to the subscribers. This novel initiative was announced by Professor M. Sahadevan, General secretary of the Tamil Nadu Unit, N.F.B., recently.

Like most people with a camera, he can't resist a photographic opportunity. But there is a difference, Dave Ducommun (Woodridge, U.S.) cannot distinguish everything that comes through his lens. He is legally blind.

"Probably the most difficult part is being able to switch, stop or the different settings most of these cameras have. It just takes longer," said Ducommun.

Following discussions with the country’s ‘National Commission for Persons with Disability’, Bank of Valletta (Malta) has introduced this new service for its visually impaired customers to have better access to their bank accounts.

"At Bank of Valletta we are supportive of our customers' needs and always seek to tailor our services to the specific requirements of our customers," said Igino Xuereb, Chief Officer Operations at Bank of Valletta. "Indeed, mutuality is a core value of Bank of Valletta's promise,” he added.

"It has been a challenge but I wanted to create the relaxed feeling you get when you are on holiday on a beach, and at the same time, recreate the sounds, textures, the scents and even the taste that you get in a seaside garden."

Garden designer Tracy Foster of Leeds (U.K.) has won a gold medal at the Gardeners' World show in Birmingham for her revolutionary £3,000 (approximately Rupees 2,37,000) seaside garden for blind people.