For Shankar Chandrashekar, technology is the window through which he can stride independently in the world. The 28-year-old tech whiz from Ballari is visually challenged and has limited usage of his arms. He credits technology for helping him become a tax-paying citizen.
"As long as I have internet, I don't need anyone's help," says Shankar, who works as an accessibility tester in a software firm in New Delhi and lives on his own. He uses his mobile phone to book cabs, buy groceries and pretty much everything else.
He is keen to help others find the independence he has found. He runs a WhatsApp forum for visually challenged persons, which has 180 members. Apart from that, he runs a Youtube channel Tech Accessibility Tutorials, which he started in December 2016 and now has 700 subscribers. He has provided the material for the tutorial while a friend of his, Vaishnavi, has given the voice over.
"A lot of visually challenged people have started using touch devices, but want to know how to navigate sites for bank transactions, booking tickets, etc. Some say that the applications on their computer or mobile are not working. I help them find solutions," says Shankar.
He was introduced to the world of technology after he completed a diploma in teaching for the visually challenged when his friend gifted him a laptop. "I taught myself coding in Java, C++ and HTML using online tutorials," he says. He has designed a website on a popular blogging platform, which he has customised using HTML coding. As an accessibility tester, he tests upcoming software to see how suitable they are for the visually challenged.
Doesn't his family worry about him living alone? "I have been independent since I was three," he says.
That was when his parents put him in Shree Ramana Maharishi Academy for the Blind in Bengaluru, where he studied till class 10. "There were no such facilities in Ballari at the time. Although the situation has improved, a lot remains to be done in terms of making education accessible for all," he says.
He recounted enrolling with a private university for a long distance B.Sc. course. After he had paid ₹5,000 as fees, officials told him that that they do not have any audio material to study from. "This was after I called them and told them that I am visually challenged and they offered me a discount for the course," he said.
His next goal is to design a website which would bring together volunteers who would like to help the visually challenged. "Suppose I want to visit Mysuru, but am not confident of travelling on my own. If a volunteer is ready to take me around the city, I can visit a new place. Or, say I want to learn coding and am looking for a teacher, or for a scribe to write the examination for me," he says.
The learning is two way, he stresses, "More often than not, it's the sighted person who gets to learn something from the visually challenged."
