June 17, 2019
Traveling independently is a major challenge that people with vision
impairments face in India. There are many assistive devices available today
to help overcome this. The National Association for the Blind and
multinational tyre manufacturing company Goodyear have come together to
implement a project in Delhi to spread awareness about this.
At 15 million, India is home to the world’s largest population
of blind people. This is a community that is seeking to make its presence
felt in the space of education and employment. The biggest barrier they face
comes to independent travel.
People with vision impairments are among the most vulnerable to road
accidents. This in turn leads to very real and legitimate fears when it comes
to traveling alone, in them and their families.
Recognising this, prominent NGO, National Association for the Blind
(NAB) and leading multinational tyre company
Goodyear have come together to conduct mobility training for
blind people in Delhi.
We are happy to work with Goodyear to implement a project on road safety
and mobility for the blind. Road safety is a big challenge, and blind
people face difficulties in using public transport. There are not many
institutions that provide the training needed. We have trained 500 visually
impaired people in using white cane, smart cane and various GPS aids. –
Prashant Ranjan Verma, General Secretary, National Association for
the Blind
Established in 1979, the NAB is committed to making visually impaired people
independent in various aspects of life, an effort that has won the
organisation many prestigious national and international awards. The NGO
conceived of the road safety project to train people between the age of 12 to
50 years.
“We have also trained many girls as part of the project”, says
Meenakshi Chandwani, Program Manager, NAB. “The girls have
benefitted a lot from this”. Fifty girls from economically marginalised
families were given mobile phones by Goodyear as well. “These are smart
phones equipped with features, so they are always aware of their location and
can seek help. Independent travel is an even bigger challenge for disabled
girls and the project was an incentive for them to come forward”.
The training was wide ranging and included different aspects related to road
safety.
“I taught many how to use the white cane, and how to walk with it”, says
Anil Kumar, a mobility trainer. “I taught them to how
travel on the road, how to use public transport like buses, the Delhi Metro,
etc. “
There were training sessions held in the use of the smart cane developed by
Indian Institute of Technology Delhi (IIT-D) and
Saksham. The cane warns uses of obstacles in the way using
vibrations.
The training looked at independent movement in indoor environments, walking
on footpaths, boarding buses, using GPS, Delhi Metro, crossing roads, finding
traffic information and getting navigation guidance using GPS.
“Thanks to the training, my daily travel now is much easier”, said
Gokul, a student. Another student Rishabh
feels equally positive about venturing out on his own. “I am more confident
now and want to learn more”.
The participants in the mobility training were all from north India, mostly
from economically poor families. There were some hostel residents from the
Delhi-NCR.
GET IN TOUCH: To find out about future road safety programmes
conducted by the NAB, check out their website http://www.nabdelhi.in/. You
can also call the office at 011-26176379, 011-26102944,
011-8826260010 or reach Prashant Ranjan Verma at +91-9811686966 and
gs@nabdelhi.in.
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people opens doors to new job opportunities
Source: https://newzhook.com/story/22561
