In India, centre for disability studies inaugurated

GUWAHATI, INDIA, Jan 9: The Gauhati University, in collaboration with NTPC Limited, started an information communication training centre (ITC) at the department of disability study. The aim behind this training centre is to encourage students with disability to pursue higher education in the field of science and technology. Power minister Pradyut Bordoloi, who inaugurated the centre, said, "It is really a memorable day as such a training centre would definitely help differently abled students to pursue higher education in science and technology." Source: http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com

In Singapore, work on access of important broadcasts for people with hearing disabilities

Jan 11: The Media Development Authority is working with broadcaster MediaCorp to find practical and cost-effective ways to ensure Singapore's deaf community has access to programmes of national significance, said Minister for Information, Communications and the Arts Yaacob Ibrahim in Parliament yesterday. He was responding to Member of Parliament (Moulmein-Kallang GRC) Denise Phua's question on whether the ministry would consider subtitling all important television broadcasts, such as the National Day Rally, General Election and those relating to national security. The minister noted that "subtitling solutions can be resource-intensive, especially for live broadcasts; so we need to find a solution that is practical and sustainable". Current efforts include captions to summarise the Prime Minister's National Day Rally speech and posting the written speech online. News bulletins on most free-to-air TV channels as well as several public service broadcast TV programmes also carry subtitles. Source: http://www.todayonline.com

Pincha appointed Commissioner for Persons with Disabilities

NEW DELHI, INDIA, Jan 12: Prasanna Kumar Pincha, a blind person, has been appointed as Chief Commissioner for Persons with Disabilities for the first time in the country. Pincha took charge as the Chief Commissioner on December 28. A disability rights activist, Pincha had served as founder principal of Government Institute for the Blind in Assam's Jorhat. A law graduate with a Masters degree in English literature, Pincha also worked as a Joint Director in Social Welfare Department of Assam government and was a Special Rapporteur with National Human Rights Commission. He was selected for the National Award for Best Employee (Visual Disability) in 1999 by the Central government. Source: http://ibnlive.in.com

Rehabilitation Council of India demanded 2% budgetary provision for people with disabilities

NASHIK, INDIA, Jan 13: Pointing out that disabled people are being ignored, the Rehabilitation Council of India (RCI) has demanded a 2% budgetary provision for their welfare, besides seeking the creation of a separate ministry for them. Member-secretary of RCI, J P Singh, who was in Nashik on Saturday to attend a conference of the district branches of the National Association for the Blind from Maharashtra, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Goa, said that a proposal for setting up an independent university for the disabled had also been submitted to the central government. "Disabled persons make up 2% of the total population of the country and considering that the presence of even a single disabled member in a family affects the whole family, nearly 15% of the country's population is affected," Singh told TOI. "The existing provision under the current five-year plan is around Rs 1,200 crore. This amount is too less when compared to disabled population. So, we want 2% of the total budget, in proportion to the population, for their welfare." He stressed on the need for a separate innovative university for disabled people that would cater to their special needs and impart education under various faculties. He said that the university could also conduct research on the issues concerning disabled people and work out modalities for their welfare. He added that the planning commission has been petitioned to include the proposal in the forthcoming 12th five-year plan. Singh also said that a special section should be set up in every traditional university across the country to cater to the special needs of disabled people and conduct research for improving their lives. Singh said that there was no policy framed by the government for the education of disabled children right from birth up to six years of age, unlike the policy for education of 'normal' children. He said that teachers appointed to impart education for disabled children need special training, for which special funding was required. He said that while NGOs were doing their bit to improve the lives of the disabled, the government ought to pay more attention to their woes. Among the dignitaries who attended the conference were executive director of Blind People's Association, Gujarat, Bhushan Punani, secretary of NAB, Madhya Pradesh, J J Vachani, honorary secretary general, NAB, K Ramakrishna and joint secretary of NAB, Maharashtra, Mukteshwar Munshettiwar. Source: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com

Singaporeans more accepting of people with disabilities: survey

SINGAPORE, Jan 13: Singaporeans today are more accepting of people with disabilities as part of the community, workplace and everyday life. This is according to findings by the Society for the Physically Disabled (SPD) which conducted a nationwide survey to gather the public's perception towards people with disabilities. The study, which mirrors an earlier one conducted in 2009, is part of the Society's on-going 'I Accept' campaign which aims to encourage the public to accept people with disabilities as equal members of society. A total of 904 respondents, aged between 15 and 65 took part in the initiative. It consisted of both street and online surveys conducted from end-November till end-December last year. The findings revealed that there is a considerable improvement in the public's perceived barriers in communicating with people with disabilities. 25.3 per cent of the respondents say they think it is harder to communicate and deal with people with disabilities than non-disabled people, compared to 43 per cent in 2009. There is also a significant decrease in the number of people who feel people with disabilities are dependent on others - from 47 per cent in 2009 to 13.4 per cent in the 2011 polls. 53.1 per cent of those surveyed felt people with disabilities should be accompanied by a non-disabled person when going out to public places. This is a slight fall from the 66 per cent polled in 2009. Ninety-three per cent agreed that more can be done to help people with disabilities on public transportation in Singapore. Ninety-six per cent also expressed the need for more members of the public to give way to people with disabilities while entering lifts and boarding trains. Nearly 80 per cent of 61 respondents who are in a position to hire are open to employing people with physical disabilities. SPD's president Ms Chia Yong Yong, said: "Besides generating awareness and greater acceptance of people with disabilities in major areas such as employment and education, we hope to also cultivate graciousness in the public's everyday encounters with people with disabilities such as showing a little more patience, giving way and lending a helping hand. "It is heartening to see improvements in the level of receptiveness towards people with disabilities amongst Singaporeans, and we do hope to see this trend continue, and to see more people with disabilities integrated and included in our mainstream society." Source: http://www.channelnewsasia.com

In India, Asha Kiran hopes to empower children with disabilities with new courses

CHANDIGARH, INDIA, Jan 16: Asha Kiran, a centre in Sector 46 for disabled children is bringing out new web designing, computer and tally courses for its children. The centre is also considering a cooking and hardware course. “We are coming up with a cooking course for hearing impaired children as well as a hardware course for boys. These courses will commence within 15 days for a group of 30 students,” said Hitesh Sharma, sign language instructor at Asha Kiran. Vinod Chadha, president of the National Association for Blind said they have also planned to start a new computer software course, web designing and tally courses through National Small Industries Corporation’s sponsorship in Asha kiran. The National Handicapped Finance Development Corporation (NHFDC) is also assisting Asha Kiran financially to start these courses.” While talking to Newsline, Sumati Chandel, a physiotherapist, informed that the children at Asha Kiran were very quick in picking up skills they were taught in the courses. Around 300 children have been placed in jobs in the last three years. While some have been placed in call centres, others have found a place in beauty parlours. She further added that almost 200 children have gained the benefits from its physiotherapy centre. Source: http://www.indianexpress.com

Omani and African man bike over 3000km around Oman to raise money for children with disabilities

MUSCAT, Jan 18: An Omani and a South African man will bike over 3000km around Oman to raise money for children with disabilities. Khalid Al Mamari, 30, will join Tom Millward, 48, who biked around the country last year to raise support for the Association of Early Intervention for Children with Disability (AEI). The two will set off on their journey this Thursday. “These gentlemen are doing something extraordinary to help the organisation reach its targets and we are very proud of them,” said Hasan Al Moosa, from the AEI. Al Mamari works for Omantel, which sponsored Millward last year, and he said he was very inspired by him. The fact that Millward cycled through Al Mamari’s own country to raise money for Omani children motivated Al Mamari to do his part. “I saw that as Omani youth we aren’t involved in charity. We are too shy to do it,” Al Mamari said. He said his friends and family told him he was crazy to embark on such a journey, and it was hard to convince them to support him. “But when they heard the objectives of the mission, they agreed with me,” said Al Mamari, who will be using his annual leave for the journey. Last year Millward raised over RO6,000 and the men hope to raise more this time. The funds will go towards the operational costs of running the AEI, which provides special care and education for young Omani children with a variety of disabilities. The men will leave from Qurum City Center tomorrow morning and head towards Quryat. They will follow the coast down to Salalah and the bike up through the interior to Al Battinah Governorate before returning to Muscat on March 5. Along their journey of about 3,500km they will be able to tell Omanis about the services the AEI provides. Many people in the interior regions aren’t aware of the association, Millward said. The men have been preparing for months, both on their bikes and in the gym. Al Mamari said he’s not as physically fit for the task as he’d like to be, but mentally he feels prepared for the adventure, which will include days of cycling up to 10 hours. Source: http://www.timesofoman.com