Regional Conference on Deaf blindness of the East and North-East India is being held in Kolkata, November 16-18. Network meetings of UDAAN (adult deafblind persons), Prayaas (parents and caregivers of persons with deafblindness), Abhiprerana (professionals who work with the persons with deafblindness) are held in three parallel sessions, and also a meeting for the professionals of vocational rehabilitation of PwDbs. This 3 day programme is funded by Kamal India Foundation, Kamal Udwaida Foundation, RupinNelumboStiflung, Grand Challenges Canada, NIHR, UK AID,and Sense International India and organized by Aakanksha, ShishuSarothi and Kolkata Society for Empowerment of the Differently Abled.
. In the concluding day a visit to the National Career Service Centre for the Differently Abled, Kolkata has been organized for all participants. The numbers of total participants are 120, who came from UP, Bihar, Jharkhand, Odisha, Chattisgarh, Maniput, Tripura, Assam, and West Bengal.
Resource Persons are from Sense International India, Aakanksha and Kolkata Society for Empowerment of the Differently Abled (KSEDA).
- The regional meeting on vocational rehabilitation training is concentrated on finding out new trades and adaptation of new technologies for the use of the PwDbs.
- Prayaas network concentrates on the development of local networks in each state of Est and north-East India and integration of these local networks into regional networks. This practice would help in better communication at the government / social level for ascertaining the rights of the PwDbs.
- Abhiprerana network is working on more adaptive teaching startegies for the PwDbs, as more children with deafblindness are being enrolled in SMSA, and general school teachers are dependent on specially trained educators for retaining the children with deafblindness into general classroom.
- Udaan network is concentrating fully on the mental health issues of the PwDbs. During the COVID 19 pandemic, these people were more marginalized and shut into the rooms of four walls. Absence of any scope of outward mobility put them into a life with more restrictions.
We hope this regional meeting would help in developing a bonding between institutions, adults PwDbs, parents and professionals by sharing their own experiences and local differences along with the commonality of being Indian and connected with the PwDbs in one way or another.
