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"Less Than 1 Per Cent Disabled Can Access Technology"
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A ray of hope was seen at Techshare 2012, where 47 products for people with disabilities were showcased.
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Tuesday, February 07, 2012:
India is moving ahead on the technology path. Right? Wrong. According to a data, less than one per cent of the 80 million disabled Indians have access to assistive technologies. At a time when India is witnessing a technological revolution of sorts, this kind of data is rather shocking. But a ray of hope was seen at Techshare 2012, where 47 products for people with disabilities were showcased.
BarrierBreak, in association with National Centre for Promotion of Employment for Disabled People (NCPEDP), Royal National Institute of Blind People (UK) has organised a two-day event Techshare India, which is the country’s only Pan-Disability Conference and Exhibition.
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The exhibition showcased over 47 products which are assistive technology for the people across a spectrum of disabilities. One of the notable products was from Saksham India Trust which showcased audio-descripted and captioned films such as Peepli Live, Black and Munnabhai MBBS so that the visually impaired and deaf can enjoy the same.
Sri Vishnu Education Society showcased the smart hat (for people with congenital disease whose head keeps tilting), currency note identifier and also smart belts (for walking without sticks). Techshare 2012 was clearly an indication that there is much work that is being done in this segment and a lot more is required.
One path-breaking technology showcased at the event was Dolphin Supernova Access Suite. It provides access to Indian English accent voice and Hindi support. It can be used by a visually impaired person for working independently on the computer. The technology would talk as you type, announcing words or characters so you can check what you write. It also would read out the screen as you are interacting with it. A person could access the Web, write e-mails, create documents, spreadsheets and presentation. This provides a visually impaired person 100 per cent independent operability.
Speaking at the conference organised during the event, Shilpi Kapoor of BarrierBreak, said, “The Knowledge Commission website clearly states that India is planning to set up 54,000 libraries over the next two years. Products such as the Dolphin Supernova access suite that have been developed for all visually impaired users, from low vision to blind; with a full screen reader offering magnification, speech and Braille support, giving people with visual impairment the freedom to access Windows in the way that suits them best--should be considered as priorities while setting up these libraries.”
Tahir Zubair, EFYTIMES News Network
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