Saksham Tek Fiesta - 14th and 15th August 2022
Saksham organised a two-day Tek Fiesta on the 14th and 15th of August to inaugurate our newest resource center in Shimla. We set up an experience zone containing many of our assistive technology solutions, intended as a one-stop spot for persons with visual impairments and/or their allies to try their hand at all the available assistive tech in order to make an informed choice about the products that will best suit their needs. Another landmark event of the Tek Fiesta was the lightning training component, conducted by trainers from Saksham Delhi, focusing on the use of three devices: laptops, DAISY players, and Android phones.
Equipping the students with laptops at Young Scholars Educational Trust - July 15, 2022
We have wonderful news for you! It gives us great pleasure to share that we recently inaugurated the Saksham Resource Center in Jalandhar, Punjab. We would like to make a special mention of Dr. Vinod Pal, who is associated with Niti Aayog. He has been one of our strongest pillars of support in the process of getting the Saksham Jalandhar Resource Center up and running. Ms. Seema Chopra graciously presided over the inauguration ceremony as a special guest. She has had a long history of engagement with social work in the disability sector in Punjab.
Equipping the students with laptops at Young Scholars Educational Trust - July 15, 2022
9 laptops were distributed with the support of Access Braille to the students during an event organized at YSE on 15th July 2022. Before handing over the laptops to the students, they were configured and loaded with all requisite softwares that can aid the students in reading, writing, and performing other such day-to-day tasks. Ms. Sadhna Arya the founder of Young Scholars Book Bank thanked Saksham for supporting the students with visual impairments who are enrolled at the centre. The beneficiaries would be provided training by YSE.
Digital India Week 2022
It was a proud moment indeed when Honourable Prime Minister Narendra Modi met our student Reema at the exhibition organised during the Digital India Week 2022. Reema explained how Tactile diagrams created by Raised Lines Foundation (RLF) help her understand visual concepts of Science, Math and Economics. She also described some features of the tactile diagrams to Modi ji, like how different textures are used to denote different colours in the Indian flag and the map of India. She shared that she finds these tactile representations immensely helpful in understanding different visual concepts, and she attributes her 84% score in class 10th to facilities like these, that helped her compete on equal terms with her sighted peers.
Reema presented the honourable Prime Minister with a tactile photo of himself, and Modi ji gave her his blessings.
Reema is a class 12 student studying in Bal Bharati Public School, which is a mainstream school in Noida. Reema is late-blind, and additionally belongs to a low-income family. She has made great strides in learning accessibility and independence skills at the Saksham resource centre in Noida after her vision loss, and now looks forward to enroll in a reputed BBA program after she finishes high school.
Digital Empowerment for Education and Employment of Persons with Visual Impairment - Date: June 21, 2022
On June 21, 2022, on the occasion of International Yoga Day, Saksham and Vikasa Tarangini joined hands to work towards ‘Digital Empowerment’ of students with blindness and low vision. Under this initiative, specially configured laptops were provided at subsidized cost, along with books and training to make students self-reliant in their reading & writing, as well as to prepare and empower them for quality education and employment. Pujya Sri Chinna Jeeyar Swamiji, Founder Vikasa Tarangini, VTS World, and Netra Vidhyalaya, graced the occasion as chief guest, and celebrated the beginning of this phenomenal initiative with us.
Voice of Saksham and Singing competition - Date: June 27, 2022
On the 27th of June, 2022, Saksham organised the finale of the “Voice of Saksham” singing competition for young visually impaired people from the three states of Haryana, Punjab and Himachal Pradesh to comemmorate Helen Keller’s 142nd birthday. The event was sponsored by Canara Bank, with whose generous support Saksham could award laptops, tablets, and DAISY Players as first, second and third prizes to the 3 winners from each participating state, to encourage digital empowerment of students. Deepak Kumar (Haryana), Radhika Ahuja (Punjab), and Ravi (Himachal Pradesh) won the first prize. Saima (Haryana), Ranjan (Punjab), and Kuldeep Kondal (Himachal Pradesh) bagged the second prize. Shadma (Haryana), Veer Singh (Punjab), and Srishti Chauhan (Himachal Pradesh) secured the third position. Heartiest congratulations to all the winners, and three cheers to all the participants who made the event such a success!
Online singing contest for visually impaired – Tribune News Service Jalandhar, June 27