Every Sunday, a group of youngsters assemble at Maharaja’s Park in Hassan. They spend around three hours talking to each other, while others watch them with curiosity. The youth, who are speech and hearing impaired, communicate with one another through signs and expressions.
For the last one year, nearly 30 of them have been meeting at the park every Sunday.
“We assemble here to talk because we can understand one another,” says Anil, who communicated with this reporter through a piece of paper.
“All of us have mobile phones, which we use only for messaging. Through SMSs, we communicate and meet. We talk about many things and bring other people like us under the banner of the Hassan District Association for Deaf and Dumb,” said Anil, who is the treasurer of the association. A few of them from the group have obtained formal education till SSLC and a couple of them have studied in schools meant for special children.
Bhanuprakash, a member of the group and a native of Hirebelaguli village in Holenarsipur taluk, was in Hassan only to meet his friends and spend some time together.
Except the park, they do not have space to sit and talk to one another. Recently, they met Hassan MLA H.S. Prakash with a demand to find a place for their activities.
“Mr. Prakash listened to our problems and made arrangements for our meetings in a private school, Vivekananda Vidyalana, in Hassan town. We will be able to meet there from next Sunday,” said Bhanuprakash.
The association now plans to hold a district-level sports meet for the speech and hearing impaired. “We are 90 people in the district. Those in Hassan meet regularly on Sundays. We want to involve everybody across the district in the sports meet,” said Rajesh Gowda, president of the association.
