Vision Aid Charitable Services Society has launched a virtual online student stations for the visually challenged. The first two stations to be connected online are Seva Bharati School for Visually Challenged in Mangalore and Sushurta Eye Hospital in Kolkata. The online class room that is equipped with a camera and computer was inaugurated at Vision Aid’s centre at Ba-Bapu Bhavan here on Monday by Director of Centre for Policy Studies A. Prasanna Kumar.
Lauding the work as extraordinarily creative, and service of Vision Aid, he said 20 per cent of the urban slum dwellers suffer from vision impairment and it needed to be addressed.
It extends the education via internet using the services of Gyaanmantra, a Delhi-based call centre, says M.S. Raju, president of Vision Aid, an IITian from Kharagpur.
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Vision Aid runs the facility in collaboration with VAInc of USA of which his son Ramakrishna Raju is founder-director.
While the school is here, the student station can be anywhere and requires a computer fitted with a camera costing Rs.10,000. Of the amount Rs.5,000 is given as support by Vision Aid and it installs the equipment also.
“It is extremely difficult for the vision impaired to lead their life and carry out daily routine. Hence, we have prepared orientation and mobility training manual and handbook for them,” elaborates Mr. Raju. Vision Aid also offers Administrators of Application for Vision Impaired to train B.Ed. and D.Ed. teachers. Mr. Raju says while the country turns out six lakh teachers every year only 600 are trained in handling visually challenged. If trained regular teachers can identify and help the visually impaired. The online facility can help train two lakh teachers.
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A 50-lesson certificate course will improve the employability of the visually impaired, says Mr. Raju.