New Delhi: From postal ballots to QR code-enabled voter slips, the polling for the Delhi assembly elections Saturday had many firsts to its credit.

Delhi became the first state to experiment with postal ballots, so that voting more convenient for those with severe disabilities or above the age of 80 years.

Ameerullah Siddiqui, a voter from Okhla constituency, who has an orthopaedic impairment, said the ballot paper was sent to him about seven days in advance by the returning officer. He cast his vote and sent it back the same day.

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, February 9

Thirteen-year-old visually impaired Prerna Sharma, who was a motivational speaker, died at the PGIMER here today. She was suffering from jaundice.

An inspiration for students of the City Beautiful, she was honoured with ‘Outstanding Creative Child with Disabilities’ by the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment.

Last year, Prerna Sharma, who was a student of Government Model Senior Secondary School, Dhanas, was awarded a commendation certificate during the Republic Day function in Chandigarh.

The world’s tallest statue, ‘Statue of Unity’ in Gujarat’s Narmada, which is visited daily by over 5,000 tourists, including elders and persons with disabilities (PwDs,) is all set for an upgrade to make it completely disabled-friendly.

The 182-metre-tall engineering marvel that was founded in a memorial tribute to Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel in Gujarat has recently got the tag of Shanghai Cooperation Organisation’s ‘8 Wonders of SCO’.  It is also said to be on the itinerary list of US President Donald Trump who is expected to visit India in the last week of February this year.

By Shruti Pushkarna

At the risk of sounding self-aggrandising, I’d say I’m a fairly empathetic person. Even when I wasn’t working in the disability domain, I was reasonably conscious of the different needs of people. Not like I changed anything around me or was overly vociferous on such subjects, but at least I was ‘aware’.

And that’s what I want to talk about. Awareness.

Swalekhan’ will help the obviate the need for hard-to-find scribes by allowing students to type in answers

An Android-based application (App) built on the basis of a technology innovation promises to academically empower visually impaired students by freeing them of their dependence on scribes while writing exams.