For 10 days earlier this month, 14 police personnel from stations in the Mylapore district underwent training in sign language.
Numbers, important places, modes of transport and relationships were some of the many topics covered in their training session, and certificates are due to be distributed to them later this week.
“When a person with a hearing impairment comes to the police with a grievance, we find it difficult to interpret what they are saying. And so, we decided to go ahead with a training session for select police personnel. We chose 14 people up to the level of sub-inspector from the seven stations under the Mylapore district,” said V. Balakrishnan, deputy commissioner, Mylapore.
The sessions spanned about 20 hours, said N. Vinoth, a lecturer at Presidency College and a sign language trainer.
“It’s a basic level of training, but we covered about 35 topics — this included even household items and States of the country. The idea was to teach the personnel to be able to understand and respond to a complaint — for instance, if a person with a hearing impairment has lost his mobile phone on a bus, how would they ask questions to be able to get details or if a member of the public asks a question, how to answer,” he explained.
‘A useful experience’
Head constable R. Jayakanthan of the Kotturpuram police station, who underwent the training, said it was a great experience.
“It was very useful as we were taught how to listen to a grievance and understand what a person with a hearing impairment is saying,” he said.
J. Nadhiya, who also underwent the training, said they would now be able to carry on a basic communication.
