The vachanas of 12th Century social reformer and poet Basaveshwara will soon be available in Braille script.
Sahana Charitable Trust, a non-government organisation, will release ‘Basava Vachanamruta’, a collection of 108 vachanas and their descriptions for the benefit of the visually-challenged.
The Dharwad branch of the trust has been instrumental in bringing out the collection. “It took almost a year to complete the translation. Ramachandra Dhongade has edited the Braille version, based on a compilation by Dr. L. Basavaraju,” said Neela Tubaki, head of the Dharwad unit.
But, the cost involved is proving to be a hurdle. “Unfortunately, we have been able to produce only 15 copies for lack of funds. The 123-page collection costs Rs. 3,000 each,” Ms. Tubaki said.
President of the trust V. Narasimhaiah, who is visually-challenged, told The Hindu that they wanted to distribute the compilation free of cost to render qualitative education to visually-challenged students.
“But the Braille embosser, a printer that renders text as tactile Braille cells, used by the trust has become defunct. We are short of funds to repair it,” Mr. Narasimhaiah said.
