Enthusiasm to vote turned into disappointment for many when they had to return without exercising right of franchise, here on Monday. Reliance of those engaged into election duty on manual rolls at polling booths belied tall claims of Election Commission (EC) going hi-tech. SMS service and toll-free telephone lines for providing voters with information also crashed on the polling day, strengthening the argument from many that the EC proved unequal to the task on this front.

Walking with Paralympic Gold Medalist Tim Prendergast along one of London's busiest streets, 'disability' is not the first word that springs to mind.

Weaving through the heaving crowds outside Baker Street underground train station, Prendergast, who is blind except for peripheral vision, crosses a road without pause - exhibiting the focused confidence that led him to victory in the T13 800m in Athens in 2004 with a time of 1:56.23.

About a year ago the Senate fell five votes short of ratifying an international treaty that would improve protections for the disabled. It was an ignoble spectacle as the opponents rebuffed Bob Dole, a former colleague and disabled veteran, who came to the Senate floor to lobby for it. The Senate now has a chance to redeem itself.

The uncanny vision of a group of students of the University of Pune’s (UoP) Blind Centre has worked wonders for the city’s visually challenged students, who were struggling to find writers for their examinations. The group has created a Facebook page, Drushti-Vision, through which they tapped hundreds of people readily offering to become their buddy writers during examinations.

Not only NGOs, but people from all sectors came forward to aid the visually challenged examinees. The idea of a Facebook page thus brought in a huge database for the UoP’s Blind Centre.

Scientists warn that the contraceptive pill may play a role in the leading cause of blindness, glaucoma, and urge women at risk to have their eyes screened