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Now, online books for disabled persons
http://editors.cis-india.org/news/now-online-books-for-disabled-persons
<b>An article by L Subramani – Deccan Herald (6th Sept, 2009)</b>
<p>Bangalore: DAISY Forum of India (DFI), who promote talking books in DAISY (Digitally Accessible Information System) format for persons with disability, has provided an accessible consolidated list of DAISY books online for disabled persons across the country to browse.<br />“At the moment, we have catalogues from Saksham Trust (Delhi), NAB, Mitra Jyoti (Bangalore), BPA (Ahmedabad), Blind Persons Association (Calcutta) and Discipleship Centre. We would get more catalogues in the near future,” said Dipendra Manocha, President DSI, in an email announcement.<br />Bookbole.com, an online portal designed for persons with disability, is hosting the catalogue. “We have about 600 books in total,” said Nirmita Narasimhan, Project Manager with city-based Centre for Internet and Society (CIS), who have partnered in creating bookbole.<br />“Accessibility, especially books and printed materials has been a problem for persons with vision challenge. Daisy Talking Books (DTB) have been created to address the dearth of information in accessible format,” Nirmita said. Persons who access the catalogue at bookbole.com can contact the concerned organisation directly and get the book from them.<br />“On receiving the request for books, we would burn it on a CD (in DAISY format) and post it to the concerned individual. This is the first time we have a consolidated list of DAISY books in the country, which is good for both people looking for books and organisations like us who have been developing them,” Madhu Singhal, Managing Trustee of Bangalore-based Mitra Jyothi.<br />DAISY format allows readers to access the books both in text and audio format. It is also easier for the readers to understand certain finer aspects of the book such as page numbers. “If someone wants to re-read a particular page in a book, it is entirely not possible in traditional audio format. Whereas, DAISY format lets them know exactly the place they are reading and let them go back and forth quite the same way as an able-bodied person would do with the printed page,” Madhu said.</p>
<p>-DH News Service</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
For more details visit <a href='http://editors.cis-india.org/news/now-online-books-for-disabled-persons'>http://editors.cis-india.org/news/now-online-books-for-disabled-persons</a>
</p>
No publisherradhaAccessibility2011-04-02T14:58:42ZNews ItemAsia-Pacific Regional Forum on Mainstreaming ICT Accessibility for Persons with Disabilities
http://editors.cis-india.org/news/asia-pacific-regional-forum-on-mainstreaming-ict-accessibility-for-persons-with-disabilities-1
<b>The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) jointly with the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP) and in partnerships with the Global Initiative for Inclusive ICTs (G3ict), the National Telecommunications Commission of Thailand (NTC), the Department of Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy (DBCDE), Australian Government, and National Electronics and Computer Technology Center (NECTEC) Thailand are organising the "Asia-Pacific Regional Forum on Mainstreaming ICT Accessibility for Persons with Disabilities" to be held in Bangkok, Thailand from 25 to 27 August 2009. The Forum is hosted by the Ministry of Information and Communication Technology (MICT) Thailand, Government of Kingdom of Thailand.
Ms. Nirmita Narasimhan, Programme Manager, Centre for Internet and Society, India will be giving a presentation on Policy Formulation for Internet and Electronic Accessibility for Persons with Disabilities.</b>
<p>With 139 countries having signed the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities ("CRPD"), and 51 having ratified it as of October 2008, legislative and regulatory activities related to the implementation of its digital accessibility agenda will be a priority among ITU Member States. Yet, few references and guidelines are available for country regulatorys and legislators to implement such measures or foster national programmes supporting the digital accessibility agenda of the CRPD.<br /><br />In order to address this challenge, G3ict and ITU organised a <a href="http://g3ict.com/events/schedule/event_overview/p/eventId_59/id_196"><u>joint global forum on 21 April 2008</u></a> on Digital Accessibility standards in relation to the CRPD. At this occasion, ITU-D and G3ict launched a "<a href="http://g3ict.com/resource_center/publications_and_reports/p/productCategory_whitepapers/subCat_0/id_142"><u>Toolkit for Policy Makers</u></a>", an online tool designed to provide practical references and case studies to support implementation of the digital accessibility agenda of the CRPD at country level. G3ict also released Version 1 of its self-evaluation methodology and is currently collecting country data for is benchmarking programme, the "Digital Accessibility Index" in cooperation with Disabled People's International and the support of the law firm Powers, Pyle, Sutter and Veryille.<br /><br />The upcoming Asia-Pacific Regional Forum aims to:</p>
<ul><li>Bring together policy makers, regulators, operators, industry, NGOs and international organisations involved with persons with disabilities, as well as experts and ICT professionals including disabled persons from across the region and beyond;<br /> </li><li>Discuss the global online "Toolkit for Policy Makers" that will support stakeholders in developing policies and strategies to address ICT accessibility and service needs from persons with disabilities to meet the dispositions of the CRPD;<br /> </li><li>Ensure proper publicity and generate momentum in support of the implementation of the Digital Accessibility Agenda of the CRPD focusing on practical implementation at country level; and,<br /> </li><li>Exchange country experiences and case studies among participants as well as learn about innovations of accessibility and assistive technologies and applications.</li></ul>
<p>URL: <a href="http://www.itu.int/ITU-D/asp/CMS/Events/2009/PwDs/programme.asp">http://www.itu.int/ITU-D/asp/CMS/Events/2009/PwDs/programme.asp</a></p>
<ul><img class="image-inline image-inline" src="../IMG_0430.jpg/image_preview" alt="Asia-Pacific Regional Forum" height="115" width="400" /></ul>
<p>
For more details visit <a href='http://editors.cis-india.org/news/asia-pacific-regional-forum-on-mainstreaming-ict-accessibility-for-persons-with-disabilities-1'>http://editors.cis-india.org/news/asia-pacific-regional-forum-on-mainstreaming-ict-accessibility-for-persons-with-disabilities-1</a>
</p>
No publisherradhaAccessibility2011-04-02T15:16:04ZNews ItemCopyright v. Exercise of Fundamental rights
http://editors.cis-india.org/accessibility/blog/copyright-v-exercise-of-fundamental-rights
<b>In this article, Rahul Cherian analyzes the legal and ethical framework around the issue of copyright in relation to converting materials into accessible formats for the print impaired. </b>
<h2>Copyright Infringement v. Exercise of Fundamental Rights<b> </b></h2>
<p class="ListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="text-align: justify; ">India has about 70 million persons who cannot access printed material due to various disabilities, including visual impairment, learning disabilities and physical disabilities that prevent them from holding books or turning pages (“Print Impaired Persons”). The Copyright Act, 1957, does not provide exceptions and limitations for the benefit of Print Impaired Persons as a result of which any conversion of material into accessible formats would require permission of copyright owners. It is noted that publishers do not sell/make available books in accessible formats and are often unwilling to give the necessary permissions required for conversion of books to accessible formats and distribution of the same to Print Impaired Persons. As a result, Print Impaired Persons cannot enjoy printed material without infringement of copyright.</p>
<h3 style="text-align: justify; ">The Constitution to the rescue</h3>
<p class="ListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="text-align: justify; ">The Indian Constitution expressly provides for “equality” (Article 14), “non-discrimination” (Article 15), “freedom of speech and expression” (Article 19) and “right to life” (Article 21). Indian courts have not yet had the opportunity to pronounce any judgment on whether the Constitution requires that copyright law provide exceptions and limitations to the rights of copyright owners for the benefit of Print Impaired Persons. However, Indian courts have routinely upheld the rights of persons with disability and the Supreme Court has specifically recognized that the “right to life” as enshrined in Article 21 of the Constitution includes right to dignity including basic necessities such as reading and writing<a href="#_ftn1" name="_ftnref1"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><span>[1]</span></span></span></span></a><span class="MsoFootnoteReference">.</span> The right to education has also been recognised as a fundamental right. For print impaired persons to enjoy their fundamental rights, it is essential that they have access to material, including but not limited to educational material, in accessible formats. In this context it can be argued that the fundamental rights of Print Impaired Persons are being infringed because the Copyright Act, 1957, does not provide exceptions and limitations for the benefit of Print Impaired Persons.</p>
<h3 style="text-align: justify; ">“Reading in” of provisions in the United Nations Convention on Rights of Persons with Disabilities</h3>
<p style="text-align: justify; ">India has also signed and ratified the United Nations Convention on Rights of Persons with Disabilities<a href="#_ftn2" name="_ftnref2"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><span>[2]</span></span></span></span></a> (the “Convention”). The Convention aims to support the full and effective participation of persons with disabilities in social life and development; and to advance the rights and protect the dignity of persons with disabilities and to promote equal access to employment, education, information, goods and services<a href="#_ftn3" name="_ftnref3"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><span>[3]</span></span></span></span></a>.<span class="MsoFootnoteReference"></span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify; ">Ensuring accessibility for persons with disabilities is one of the guiding principles of the Convention<a href="#_ftn4" name="_ftnref4"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><span>[4]</span></span></span></span></a>. The preamble of the convention recognizes the importance of information in transforming the life of persons with disabilities. Article 4 (General Obligations) of the convention mandates state parties to provide accessible technology for persons with disabilities at affordable costs. Article 9 of the convention further mandates state parties to take appropriate measures to ensure the availability of information to persons with disabilities, at par with the general population<a href="#_ftn5" name="_ftnref5"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><span>[5]</span></span></span></span></a>. Article 9 also mandates state parties to endeavor to ensure the easy availability of communication and information technology to persons with disabilities at affordable costs. Article 21 of the convention cast an affirmative obligation on the state parties to effectuate the freedom of speech and expression, (including the freedom to seek, receive and impart information). The provision calls for parity between persons with disabilities and others insofar as the freedom of speech and expression are concerned. The convention recognizes the right to receive information as a facet of free speech<a href="#_ftn6" name="_ftnref6"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><span>[6]</span></span></span></span></a>.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify; ">In this regard the Convention obligates state parties to;</p>
<ul type="disc">
<li style="text-align: justify; ">Provide information intended for the general public to persons with disabilities in accessible formats and technologies appropriate to different kinds of disabilities in a timely manner and without additional cost;<a href="#_ftn7" name="_ftnref7"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><span>[7]</span></span></span></span></a></li>
<li style="text-align: justify; ">Accept and facilitate the use of Braille, augmentative and alternative communication, and all other accessible means, modes and formats of communication of their choice by persons with disabilities in official interactions;<a href="#_ftn8" name="_ftnref8"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><span>[8]</span></span></span></span></a></li>
<li style="text-align: justify; ">Ensuring that private entities which provide services to the general public, including through the Internet, provide information and services in accessible and usable formats for persons with disabilities;<a href="#_ftn9" name="_ftnref9"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><span>[9]</span></span></span></span></a></li>
<li style="text-align: justify; ">Encourage mass media, including providers of information through the Internet, to make their services accessible to persons with disabilities<a href="#_ftn10" name="_ftnref10"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><span>[10]</span></span></span></span></a><span class="MsoFootnoteReference">. </span></li>
</ul>
<p style="text-align: justify; ">Article 30 (3) of the Convention also states that “States Parties shall take all appropriate steps, in accordance with international law, to ensure that laws protecting intellectual property rights do not constitute an unreasonable or discriminatory barrier to access by persons with disabilities to cultural materials”.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify; ">After the decision of the Supreme Court in <i>Vishaka v. State of Rajasthan</i><a href="#_ftn11" name="_ftnref11"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><span>[11]</span></span></span></span></a><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"> </span>it has become a settled position of law that international conventions and norms are to be read into domestic laws in the absence of enacted domestic law, to the extent that there is no inconsistency between them.<a href="#_ftn12" name="_ftnref12"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><span>[12]</span></span></span></span></a> It is now an accepted rule of judicial construction that regard must be had to international conventions and norms for construing domestic law when there is no inconsistency between them.<a href="#_ftn13" name="_ftnref13"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><span>[13]</span></span></span></span></a><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span> </span></span>The Bombay High Court has in May 2009, “read in” provisions of the Convention into India law in Ranjit Kumar Rajak Vs State Bank of India<a href="#_ftn14" name="_ftnref14"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><span>[14]</span></span></span></span></a></p>
<p style="text-align: justify; ">The Persons with Disabilities (Equal Opportunities, Protection of Rights & Full Participation) Act 1995 (the “PD Act”), was enacted with the objective of ensuring equal opportunities for people with disabilities and their full participation in the nation building. The PD Act provides for both preventive and promotional aspects of rehabilitation like education, employment and vocational training, job reservation, research and manpower development, creation of barrier-free environment, rehabilitation of persons with disability, unemployment allowance for the disabled, special insurance scheme for the disabled employees and establishment of homes for persons with severe disability etc. In Javed Abidi v Union of India<a href="#_ftn15" name="_ftnref15"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><span>[15]</span></span></span></span></a><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"> </span>the Supreme Court observed that the object of the PD Act was to create a barrier-free environment for persons with disability and to make special provisions for the integration of persons with disabilities into the social mainstream apart from the protection of rights, provision of medical care, education, training, employment and rehabilitation. However, an appraisal of the provisions of the PD Act would show that the PD Act does not have provisions regarding the right of the visually challenged to access information. The only provision in this regard in the PD Act concerns the duty of the state to provide text books in special formats for students with disabilities.<a href="#_ftn16" name="_ftnref16"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><span>[16]</span></span></span></span></a><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"> </span> Hence there is no domestic law as regards the rights of persons with disabilities to access information and provisions of the Convention have to be read into the Copyright Act, 1957.</p>
<p class="ListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="text-align: justify; ">It is observed that visually impaired persons routinely convert books into accessible formats such as Braille. Without the amendment of the Copyright Act, such conversion would strictly speaking be an infringement of copyright. However, the issue at hand is whether such conversion is the exercise by the visually impaired person of his fundamental rights, and if so, whether the exercise of fundamental rights will override any copyright infringement. The government apparently understands this contradiction and is proposing to amend the Copyright Act to provide for appropriate exceptions and limitations. However till such time as the amendment comes through should visually impaired persons sit around and fail to exercise their fundamental rights? Interesting question, that!</p>
<div><br clear="all" />
<hr align="left" size="1" width="33%" />
<div id="ftn1">
<p style="text-align: justify; "><a href="#_ftnref1" name="_ftn1"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><span>[1]</span></span></span></span></a><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span> <i>Francis Coralie Mullin v. The Administrator, Union Territory of Delhi </i>(1981) 2 SCR 516.</span></span></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn2">
<p style="text-align: justify; "><a href="#_ftnref2" name="_ftn2"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><span>[2]</span></span></span></span></a><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span> India signed the convention on 30th March 2007 and ratified it on 1st October 2007. See United Nations Convention on Persons with Disabilities [entered into force on 3rd May 2008] GA/RES/62/170; See http://www.un.org/disabilities/default.asp?id=17 <br /></span></span></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn3">
<p style="text-align: justify; "><a href="#_ftnref3" name="_ftn3"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><span>[3]</span></span></span></span></a><span><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"> Id.</span><i></i></span></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn4">
<p><a href="#_ftnref4" name="_ftn4"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><span>[4]</span></span></span></span></a><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span> See Guiding Principles of the Convention at; http://www.un.org/disabilities/default.asp?navid=14&pid=156 </span></span></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn5">
<p style="text-align: justify; "><a href="#_ftnref5" name="_ftn5"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><span>[5]</span></span></span></span></a><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span> See Art. 9 (2)(f) </span></span></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn6">
<p style="text-align: justify; "><a href="#_ftnref6" name="_ftn6"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><span>[6]</span></span></span></span></a><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span> See Art. 21 of the Convention. </span></span></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn7">
<p><a href="#_ftnref7" name="_ftn7"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><span>[7]</span></span></span></span></a><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span> See Art. 21 (a)</span></span></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn8">
<p><a href="#_ftnref8" name="_ftn8"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><span>[8]</span></span></span></span></a><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span> See Art. 21 (b)</span></span></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn9">
<p><a href="#_ftnref9" name="_ftn9"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><span>[9]</span></span></span></span></a><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span> See Art. 21 (c)</span></span></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn10">
<p style="text-align: justify; "><a href="#_ftnref10" name="_ftn10"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><span>[10]</span></span></span></span></a><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span> See Art. 21 (d)</span></span></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn11">
<p style="text-align: justify; "><a href="#_ftnref11" name="_ftn11"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><span>[11]</span></span></span></span></a><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span> AIR 1997 SC 3011 </span></span></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn12">
<p style="text-align: justify; "><a href="#_ftnref12" name="_ftn12"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><span>[12]</span></span></span></span></a><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span> <i>Apparel Export Promotion Council v. A.K. Chopra</i> (1999) 1 SCC 759; <i>Aban Loyd Chiles Offshore Ltd & Ors. v. Union of India</i> 2008 (227) ELT 24; <i>Chairman School Managing Commitee & Ors. v. Vimmi Joshi & Ors.</i> 2008 INDLAW SC 2009 Civil Appeal No. 7355/2008; <i>Union for Civil Liberties v. Union of India</i> (2005) 10 SCC 481</span></span></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn13">
<p style="text-align: justify; "><a href="#_ftnref13" name="_ftn13"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><span>[13]</span></span></span></span></a><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span> Id</span></span></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn14">
<p style="text-align: justify; "><a href="#_ftnref14" name="_ftn14"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><span>[14]</span></span></span></span></a><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span> Order dated 8th May, 2009 of the Bombay High Court in WP No. 576 or 2009</span></span></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn15">
<p style="text-align: justify; "><a href="#_ftnref15" name="_ftn15"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><span>[15]</span></span></span></span></a><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span> 1999 AIR(SC) 512</span></span></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn16">
<p style="text-align: justify; "><a href="#_ftnref16" name="_ftn16"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><span>[16]</span></span></span></span></a><span> See Sec. 27(f) of The Persons with Disabilities Act 1995.</span></p>
</div>
</div>
<p>
For more details visit <a href='http://editors.cis-india.org/accessibility/blog/copyright-v-exercise-of-fundamental-rights'>http://editors.cis-india.org/accessibility/blog/copyright-v-exercise-of-fundamental-rights</a>
</p>
No publisherRahul CherianAccessibility2013-02-20T11:07:02ZBlog EntryCopyright Challenges for Print Impaired Persons in India
http://editors.cis-india.org/accessibility/blog/copyright-challenges-for-print-impaired-persons-in-india
<b>Print impaired persons in India face several hurdles in accessing reading materials- the biggest one being the Indian Copyright Act 1957</b>
<h3><strong>Background</strong></h3>
<ul type="disc"><li style="text-align: justify;">The Indian Constitution guarantees citizens fundamental rights to dignity, to read, to education, to information and to expression.</li><li style="text-align: justify;">India has approximately 70 million disabled persons who are unable to participate in the social, cultural and political life of the country because they cannot access materials in the printed form. These include persons with visual disabilities, persons whose physical impairments prevent them from holding or turning pages of a book and persons who have a learning disability like dyslexia. These groups can access reading materials if they are converted into formats which can be accessed by them in an alternate manner using assistive technologies.</li><li style="text-align: justify;">Recent developments in technologies such as screen reading and OCR technology, electronic tactile devices, evolution of multiple audio, audio-video and electronic formats, DAISY etc which can be adapted for use in a multiplicity of platforms have opened up innumerable possibilities for persons with different abilities to access information independently and participate in society. </li><li style="text-align: justify;">The process of conversion of a printed book into an alternate accessible format such as large print, audio, Braille and electronic formats involves special effort in terms of obtaining permissions from copyright holders, possessing manpower, infrastructure and monitory resources, concerted involvement of intermediary agencies undertaking conversion and the presence of an effective distribution model. </li></ul>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><strong>Challenges in India</strong></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Today, print impaired persons in India are faced with several problems that hamper their participation in society-</p>
<ul><li>Lack of availability of affordable technological solutions in English as well as local languages</li><li>Lack of availability of printed materials in formats that can be accessed using these technologies</li><li>Failure on the part of technology and web developers to adhere to principles of universal design which ensure that web sites are accessible to persons with disabilities</li><li>Lack of accessible or compatible mainstream technologies to work with special technologies</li><li>Lack of an enabling legal regime.</li></ul>
<h3><strong>Disability Awareness around the world</strong></h3>
<ul type="disc"><li style="text-align: justify;">The United Nations declared the decade of 1983-1992 as the decade of Persons with Disabilities and the decade of 1993-2002 as the Asian and Pacific decade of persons with disabilities. The United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities came into force from 2008. </li><li style="text-align: justify;">International bodies like the World Wide Consortium (W3C) and the Daisy Consortium have come out with standards and guidelines which will make the web and publications on the web universally accessible. </li><li style="text-align: justify;">The World Blind Union (WBU) has recently proposed a Treaty for the Blind, Visually Impaired and other Reading Disabled, (referred to as the “VIP initiative”) which seeks to harmonise limitations and exceptions at a global level so that countries around the world can freely share knowledge in accessible formats for print impaired persons. This Treaty is now being proposed by three Latin American countries and is presently tabled before the WIPO and is under discussion. </li></ul>
<h3><strong>Position in India</strong></h3>
<ul type="disc"><li>The Indian Copyright Act 1957 does not make any provision for the conversion and distribution of books in accessible formats for print impaired persons. Hence organisations serving the print impaired have to get permissions from copyright holders to undertake conversions. Further, Indian organisations are not able to borrow accessible materials from libraries in other countries since the absence of such a provision in our fair dealing clause prevents countries from lending books to print impaired persons in India. </li><li>In the case of books published in India, there are no accessible copies readily available in the market and while many publishers in principle are not averse to giving permission, the unwanted fear of piracy and lack of awareness prevents them from allowing organisations to undertake conversions. Consequently print impaired persons are denied the freedom to choose and read any book which is freely available to the public.</li><li style="text-align: justify;">In the light of increasing global attention in this matter and in the interests of the large print impaired community in India, we need to have a clear position in our law with regard to converting materials into accessible formats for print challenged persons. It is important to understand this as not merely a legal issue, but also as a social and economic cause. We need to work at various levels to solve this problem:</li></ul>
<ol><li>
<p>We need to work towards legally binding norms both at a national as well as international level. We can achieve this by supporting the proposed treaty for improved access for the visually impaired at the WIPO, and by ensuring that necessary amendments are immediately incorporated into the Copyright Act, which afford flexibilities for conversion into accessible formats for print Impaired person.</p>
</li><li>
<p>Publishers, copyright holders, organisations and print impaired persons should work collaboratively towards conversion and distribution of published works in accessible formats. Publishers should give digitised copies of books in an accessible format to recognised organisations serving the print Impaired and in return these organisations should set up a distribution mechanism which will ensure that these accessible books get circulated only within the print impaired community and do not find their way into the mainstream market.</p>
</li><li>
<p>Publishers should explore the large market in India for selling books in electronic, audio and other accessible formats along with the print copy. These copies should be available in the market at the same time and at the same price that the print copy becomes available. In the case of electronic copies, publishers may also consider selling the books at a price which is lesser than the price of the print version since this will not involve cost of paper publication.</p>
</li><li>
<p>Publishers should adopt a standard format for creating digital masters of their publications so that all distribution formats including hard copy print, braille, talking book and digital publications can be derived out of it without wastage of resources on conversions and reproduction of books in accessible formats.</p>
</li><li>
<p style="text-align: justify;">The government should frame incentive schemes for publishers and other persons developing technologies to encourage them to create accessible versions of their content and technologies.</p>
</li><li>
<p style="text-align: justify;">We need to work towards ensuring at least the minimum basic study and reference materials which are required for children with print disabilities to complete their school and college level education in all subjects and languages.</p>
</li><li>
<p style="text-align: justify;">We need to encourage peer to peer models amongst disabled persons and organisations for sharing and generating more accessible content.</p>
</li><li>
<p style="text-align: justify;">We need to work towards establishing public libraries and repositories of accessible content with a healthy system of exchange amongst them.</p>
</li><li>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Work towards generating more Indian language content and developing technologies such as text to speech synthesisers which support regional Indian language content.</p>
</li><li>
<p style="text-align: justify;">We need to work towards facilitating cross-border exchange of books so that persons in India get exposure to foreign authors and also ensure that persons abroad are able to read Indian literature. Libraries in India should be able to freely exchange books with libraries in other countries.</p>
</li><li>
<p style="text-align: justify;">We need to spread awareness about the importance of building in accessibility right at the start so that not much time, effort and money is wasted at a later stage in converting materials into accessible formats.</p>
</li></ol>
<p>
For more details visit <a href='http://editors.cis-india.org/accessibility/blog/copyright-challenges-for-print-impaired-persons-in-india'>http://editors.cis-india.org/accessibility/blog/copyright-challenges-for-print-impaired-persons-in-india</a>
</p>
No publishernirmitaAccessibility2011-08-17T08:51:33ZBlog EntryResponse to the Call from Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry for Review of the Copyright Act
http://editors.cis-india.org/accessibility/blog/response-to-ficcis-call-for-review-of-the-copyright-act
<b>This blog entry contains a letter sent by Rahul Cherian of Indojuris and Nirmita Narsimhan of the Centre for Internet and Society in response to a call from the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry for review of the Copyright Act. </b>
<p>The Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) has recently constituted a
Consultative Working Group to analyse various issues in the Copyright Act. This has been approved by the Department of Industrial Policy and
Promotion (DIPP). The group is to be chaired by Shri Amit Khare, Joint
Secretary,
Department of Higher Education, Ministry of Human Resource Development. The
purpose of the Consultative Working Group would be to look into the existing
provisions of the copyright law and the proposed amendments, as well as into the
international arrangements and suggestions. The Consultative Working Group
is expected to submit its report along with amendments or suggestion, as
required.</p>
<p>Rahul Cherian of Indojuris and Nirmita Narasimhan of CIS have submitted a report on
the provisions of the Copyright Act with respect to the limitations for
print disabled persons. This has been submitted in the form of a letter to Sheetal Chopra of FICCI; the letter is reproduced below.</p>
<p>-----</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Sheetal
Chopra</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Senior
Assistant Director and Head</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">IPR
Division</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">FICCI</p>
<p>Dear
Madam:</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;" class="SubjectLine"><strong>Subject:
Consultative Working Group on Copyright Issues – issues to be addressed by the
Consultative Working Group. </strong><strong></strong></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">As
required by you we give below the issues to be addressed by the Consultative
Working Group. This document is prepared by Nirmita Narasimhan of the Centre for
Internet and Society, Bangalore, and Rahul Cherian Jacob of IndoJuris Law
Offices, Chennai. </p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><strong>Scope -
Exceptions and Limitations for Print Impaired Persons <br /></strong></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">The scope of the issues raised here are limited to
the exceptions and limitations under the Copyright Act that are required to
facilitate access of books by the visually impaired and other print impaired
persons.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><strong>Problem faced by
Print Impaired Persons <br /></strong></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">India has approximately 70 million Print Impaired
Persons (loosely defined as persons who are unable to access print as a result
of disability and include persons who are visually impaired, persons who have
learning disabilities such as dyslexia and persons who due to physical
disability are unable to hold a book or turn pages) who do not have access to
knowledge due to a lack of reading material in accessible formats. It is
estimated that even in developed countries not more than 5% of publications get
converted into accessible formats for the benefit of Print Impaired Persons. As
a result, Print Impaired Persons are excluded from the education system, are
unable to seek meaningful employment and are on the whole excluded from all
aspects of civil society.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">It is observed that publishers do not make available
books in formats accessible by Print Impaired Persons and the Copyright Act
does not provide exceptions and limitations to the rights of the copyright
owner for third parties to convert and make available books in accessible
formats for Print Impaired Persons. This has lead to a “book famine” from the
perspective of Print Impaired Persons.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><strong>Technological
Advances and Accessible Formats <br /></strong></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Till a few years ago, Print Impaired Persons had to
rely on audio files and Braille (in the case of the persons who became visually
impaired at a young age) to enjoy printed matter. Each of these formats have
severe limitations. For example audio files have to be played serially and
navigation is severely limited. In the case of Braille, the printing costs are
expensive, reading a Braille book is up to 4 times slower than a normal book,
Braille is extremely difficult to learn if you loose sight at a later age, and
persons using Braille can communicate only with others who know Braille. However with the information technology
revolution and the creation of text-to-speech screen readers that read out
documents in electronic formats to Print Impaired Persons there are now
countless ways in which Print Impaired Persons can access books in any easy and
simple manner. Specialized electronic formats such as the DAISY Format not only
permit the visually impaired to “read” the material using screen readers but
also permit a digital file to be printed in Braille for the blind, in large
print for the partially sighted and also provide audio with inbuilt search and
indexation features for those Print Impaired Persons who have computers. The
key is that technological innovation now provides the much-needed flexibility
required by Print Impaired Persons to access material in formats they are most
comfortable with. However the availability of these technology solutions alone
does not solve the problem of dearth of books in formats that can be enjoyed by
Print Impaired Persons.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><strong>Legal compulsions
for providing exceptions and limitations for the benefit of Print Impaired
Persons <br /></strong></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">At present Indian copyright law
does not provide exceptions and limitations to the rights of copyright owners
for the benefit of Print Impaired Persons. The Indian Constitution expressly
provides for “equality” (Article 14), “non-discrimination” (Article 15),
“freedom of speech and expression” (Article 19), and “right to life” (Article
21). Indian courts have not yet had the opportunity to pronounce any judgment
on whether the Constitution requires copyright law to provide exceptions and
limitations for the benefit of Print Impaired Persons. However, Indian courts
have routinely upheld the rights of persons with disability and the Supreme
Court has specifically recognized that the “right to life” as enshrined in
Article 21 of the Constitution includes right to dignity including basic
necessities such as reading and writing. Right to education has also been
recognized as a fundamental right. For Print Impaired Persons to enjoy their
fundamental rights it is essential that they have access to material, including
but not limited to educational material, in accessible formats. As present, 70
million Indians cannot enjoy their fundamental rights due to the fact that the
Copyright Act does not provide exemptions and limitations for Print Impaired
Persons. It is to be noted that about 50 countries around the world already
provide copyright exceptions and limitations for the benefit of the visually
impaired/printed impaired.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">India has also
ratified the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with
Disabilities and the objects of the aforesaid convention include providing
persons with disability, access, on an equal basis with others, to information
and communication. Indian courts have read into Indian law provisions of the
United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. It is
also to be noted that the Standing Committee on Copyright and Related Rights of
the World Intellectual Property Organisation is currently discussing the
proposed WIPO Treaty for Blind, Visually Impaired and Other Reading Disabled Persons.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">India has also
recognized the requirements of Print Impaired Persons and had circulated draft
amendments to the Copyright Act in _________ for feedback and comments from the
public. All the leading organisations representing visually impaired persons
has submitted their responses stating that the proposed amendments did not
adequately meet the requirements of visually impaired persons.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">In light of the above the question is not whether
exceptions and limitations for the benefit of Print Impaired Persons must be
provided (they must), but what form these exceptions and limitations must take.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><strong>Exceptions and
Limitations – Issues to be considered <br /></strong></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Given below are the issues that must be considered
when providing exceptions and limitations for the benefit of Print Impaired
Persons.</p>
<ul><li><strong>Beneficiaries</strong> – The
beneficiaries of any amendment should include all persons with disability who,
due to that disability, need an accessible format to access a book to
substantially the same degree as a person without a disability. This definition
should be functional and not medical since medical definitions cannot be
exhaustive.</li></ul>
<ul><li><strong>Formats </strong>– Print Impaired
Persons should be able to enjoy the benefits of the information technology
revolution in the same way that non-disabled persons have been able to. Any
amendment should therefore take into account technological developments and
should be format neutral to give full flexibility and utility to Print Impaired
Persons. As mentioned above Braille as a format has limited application and a
majority of visually impaired persons are not able to use Braille. Moreover,
Braille cannot be used by persons with other print impairments such as dyslexia
or persons with physical disabilities.</li></ul>
<ul><li><strong>Permitted
Activities</strong> – The activities permitted by any amendment should include the making
of accessible formats of a work, supplying that accessible format, or copies of
that format, to Print Impaired Persons by any means, including by lending or by
electronic communication by wire or wireless means, and undertaking any
intermediate steps to achieve these objectives.</li></ul>
<ul><li><strong>Who can conduct
the Permitted Activities </strong>– It is noted that the cost of making an accessible
copy of a book is far higher than the cost of the book itself. It is observed
that non-profit organisations have been able to convert only a few thousands
books till date due to lack of funds. Print Impaired Persons, their families
and other members of their support group also convert books into accessible
formats at very high cost. The number of books converted by these persons is
also minimal. Keeping in mind the fact that publishers are not selling books in
accessible formats there appears to be complete market failure in this area.
The solution for this problem appears to be that, apart from non-profit
organisations, Print Impaired Persons and their support group being permitted
to conduct the Permitted Activities, volunteers and for-profit organisations
should also be able to conduct the Permitted Activities. If any of the
Permitted Activity is undertaken for profit, then the entity carrying out the
Permitted Activity must give notice to, and pay prescribed royalty to the
copyright owner. The quantum of royalty payable should be determined keeping in
mind the fact that the average income of Print Impaired Persons is far lower
than the income of non disabled persons. The possibility of creating a
collecting society for this purpose can also be explored.</li></ul>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><strong>Conclusion <br /></strong></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">“Inclusiveness” is the
underlying theme of the Indian Constitution and “Inclusion” is a word used
liberally by the courts and politicians alike. The Universal Declaration of
Human Rights prohibits discrimination on the basis of disability. The United
Nations Convention on Rights of Persons of Disabilities aims to support the
full and effective participation of persons with disabilities in social life
and development; and to advance the rights and protect the dignity of persons
with disabilities and to promote equal access to employment, education,
information, goods and services.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">However, these concepts
mean nothing to Print Impaired Persons as long as their most basic fundamental
rights continue to be denied due to the fact that Indian copyright law does not
provide exceptions and limitations for the benefit of Print Impaired Persons.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">In light of the above,
appropriate amendments must be made to the Copyright Act as soon as possible to
remove the barriers placed before Print Impaired Persons that prevent their
exercise of fundamental rights. </p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">If
you require any additional information or any clarification regarding the above
please let us know. Thank you and best regards,</p>
Nirmita
Narasimhan and Rahul Cherian
<p style="text-align: justify;"> </p>
<p>
For more details visit <a href='http://editors.cis-india.org/accessibility/blog/response-to-ficcis-call-for-review-of-the-copyright-act'>http://editors.cis-india.org/accessibility/blog/response-to-ficcis-call-for-review-of-the-copyright-act</a>
</p>
No publishersachiaIntellectual Property RightsAccessibility2011-08-17T08:51:23ZBlog EntryN.C.P.E.D.P. and BarrierBreak Technologies put forward National Policy on Electronic Accessibility
http://editors.cis-india.org/news/n.c.p.e.d.p.-and-barrierbreak-technologies-put-forward-national-policy-on-electronic-accessibility
<b>Article in Disability News and Information Service, 15 July 2009</b>
<p><strong><em>D.N.I.S. News Network:</em></strong> National Centre for
Promotion of Employment for Disabled People (N.C.P.E.D.P.) in
association with BarrierBreak Technologies has come up with a draft for
a National Policy on Electronic Accessibility. The objective of the
policy is to provide persons with disabilities equal access to
electronic and information and communication technology and services.
This policy expands on the United Nations Convention for the Rights of
Persons with Disabilities which India has ratified.</p>
<p>
Shilpi Kapoor, Managing Director, BarrierBreak Technologies says,
“Technology today is there in all aspects of life. Using electronic and
information and communication technology, we can bridge the barriers
that exist for persons with disabilities. Such a policy needs to be
applicable across different ministries and departments.”</p>
<p>
The National Policy on Electronic Accessibility emphasizes the
importance of creating awareness on accessibility and universal design
and creating and implementing standards and guidelines. It also aims at
promoting research and development in the area of universal design and
assistive technology and independent living aids and schemes in the
area of accessible electronic and information and communication
technology.</p>
<p>
The policy also emphasizes the importance of building capacity to
ensure that accessible products and services can be developed in India.</p>
<p>
Nirmita Narasimhan, Programme Manager, Centre for Internet and Society,
feels positive about the draft. "Having a National Electronic
Accessibility Policy would be an extremely positive move for India
towards bridging the digital divide; it will serve as a leading example
to other developing countries to take similar initiatives and create a
truly inclusive and accessible world," she said.</p>
<p>
The draft will be placed before N.C.P.E.D.P.’s Core Group on
Communication and Information Technology in its meeting on July 23 and
the National Committee on the Rights of People with Disabilities on
July 24. Once the policy is approved at these two forums, it will be
placed before the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology
for their consideration.</p>
<p>
For more details visit <a href='http://editors.cis-india.org/news/n.c.p.e.d.p.-and-barrierbreak-technologies-put-forward-national-policy-on-electronic-accessibility'>http://editors.cis-india.org/news/n.c.p.e.d.p.-and-barrierbreak-technologies-put-forward-national-policy-on-electronic-accessibility</a>
</p>
No publishersachiaAccessibility2011-04-02T15:43:42ZNews ItemBookshare.org Seminar
http://editors.cis-india.org/events/bookshare.org-seminar
<b>A demonstration of Bookshare.org, an online digital library for people with print disabilities</b>
<p></p>
<p><strong>Books without Barriers </strong></p>
<p>Bookshare.org is an
online digital library with over 7,500 books in English in accessible formats
for people with print disabilities.
Members can read books using any assistive technology such as DAISY, BRF
and text file for only <strong>Rs. 400 per year</strong>.<strong> <br /></strong></p>
<p><strong>Publishers and Authors in our Collection:</strong></p>
<p>We have books from
East West publications, Seasons Publishing, Orient Blackswan and authors such
as Charles Dickens, Shakespeare,
Ashokamitran and many more.</p>
<p><strong>Watch a Demonstration and Try Bookshare!</strong></p>
<p>If you have a visual
impairment, physical disability, such as cerebral palsy, or a learning
disability, such as dyslexia, you can become a member and access our library! Come
and see the many books available for you on 1 July 2009 at the CIS office.</p>
<h3>Time and Date</h3>
<p>Wednesday, 1 July, 2009; 11.00 am-1.00 pm</p>
<h3>Venue<br /></h3>
<p>Centre for Internet and Society, No. D2, 3rd Floor, Shariff Chambers (Wockhardt Hospital building),
14, Cunningham Road, Bangalore - 560052</p>
<h3>Map <br /></h3>
<p>For a map, please click <a class="external-link" href="http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&q=centre+for+internet+and+society+bangalore&jsv=128e&sll=37.0625,-95.677068&sspn=61.070016,113.203125&ie=UTF8&cd=1&latlng=12988395,77594450,9857706471034889432&ei=5QXRSKLrNYvAugPX4YSAAg">here</a>.</p>
<p>
For more details visit <a href='http://editors.cis-india.org/events/bookshare.org-seminar'>http://editors.cis-india.org/events/bookshare.org-seminar</a>
</p>
No publishersachiaEvent TypeAccessibility2011-08-31T10:49:34ZEventReport on Second National Workshop on Web Accessibility, 5-7 June 2009
http://editors.cis-india.org/accessibility/blog/second-national-workshop
<b>Nirmita Narsimhan reports on the second National Workshop on Web Accessibility for web developers, hosted by CIS in Bangalore from 5 to 7 June 2009, and attended by 15 participants. </b>
<p>The second National Workshop on Web Accessibility for web developers was held at the CIS office in Bangalore, 5-7 June 2009. Although this was intended to be more a city-based workshop, we still got participants from other states such as Kerala, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh. There were in all 15 participants predominantly from the web development and web designing backgrounds, college students and even a person from the academic field and 3 trainers. There were also some who had already prior knowledge of accessibility and this helped to raise the level of issues which were being discussed from a basic level to a more advanced level. Overall, the workshop was extremely well received and many of the participants expressed their willingness to participate in more such workshops in the future. <br /><br />The workshop was structured differently from the last one--the sessions were more practical-oriented and the trainers stressed a lot on group work. There were sessions on understanding disability, WCAG 2.0 principles and group exercises of designing accessible pages. This workshop featured some additional topics such as Flash accessibility, accessibility in documents and role play exercises for problem solving for different disabilities. For instance, in one of the sessions, the participants were asked to prepare a caption for a one minute video. One of the participants, already working on accessibility, demonstrated Orca for Linux. <br /><br /><b>Specific Outcomes</b><br /><br /> 1. The participants understood the importance of creating accessible web pages and learnt about various techniques, tools and resources for accessibility.<br /> 2. All the presentations and lectures were video documented.<br /> 3. The participants filled up feed back forms and action points to be undertaken after the workshop. CIS distributed T-Shirts and certificates to all the participants. <br /><br />To download a complete report on the workshop in pdf format, please <a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/accessibility/publications/uploads/NWAccessibilityJune2009.pdf/at_download/file" class="internal-link" title="June 2009 Workshop Report">click here</a>.</p>
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<hr />
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<p>
For more details visit <a href='http://editors.cis-india.org/accessibility/blog/second-national-workshop'>http://editors.cis-india.org/accessibility/blog/second-national-workshop</a>
</p>
No publishersachiaWorkshopAccessibility2013-02-04T05:52:05ZBlog EntryFollow-up Letter in Support of WIPO Treaty for Reading Disabled
http://editors.cis-india.org/accessibility/blog/follow-up-letter-in-support-of-wipo-treaty-for-reading-disabled
<b>CIS has sent another letter to the Department of Higher Education, Ministry for Human Resource Development, petitioning it to support the WIPO Treaty for the reading disabled. </b>
<p>In November last year, CIS launched <a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/a2k/blog-1/wbu-proposal-for-a-wipo-treaty-for-the-visually-impaired-and-reading-disabled" class="external-link">a nation wide
signature campaign</a> to support the treaty for the blind, visually impaired and
other reading disabled proposed by the World Blind Union to the WIPO. Since then, the list of signatories <a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/openness/blog/signatory-list" class="external-link">was updated</a>. In May 2009, WIPO's Standing Committee on Copyright and Related Rights (SCCR) held another meeting, and in light of this, the endorsement of the treaty and appeal to the government to support it was resubmitted, by an increased number of signatories, including members of the DAISY Forum of India.</p>
<p>
The letter and list of signatories is available below.</p>
<p>To</p>
<p>Mr. R. P. Aggarwal<br />
Secretary </p>
<p>Department of Higher Education<br />Ministry
of Human Resource Development<br />‘C’ Wing, Shastri Bhavan <br />New Delhi-110001<br />
<br />
</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Dear Sir,</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Re: Letter
of support for the proposed Treaty for the blind and visually impaired
submitted by the World Blind Union.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">We were extremely gratified that the Government took note of
our letter in November, 2008, containing endorsements of 16 organisations
urging the government to support the Treaty for the Blind, which was proposed by the World Blind Union in the WIPO
SCCR meeting from Nov 1<sup>st</sup>-6<sup>th</sup>,2008. In light of the fact
that there is another SCCR meeting scheduled from May 25<sup>th</sup>-29<sup>th</sup>,
where this issue is to be taken up, we are resubmitting our endorsement and urgent
plea to the Government to actively support this treaty, since it will be
extremely beneficial to all blind, visually
challenged and print disabled persons in India. The list of endorsers
has expanded to include about 50 more
organizations. There are many more who have verbally expressed support. We look
forward to an active response from the Government on this. Thanking you,</p>
<p>Yours Faithfully,</p>
<p>Nirmita Narasimhan<br />Programme Manager<br />(Centre for Internet and Society)</p>
<p> </p>
<p></p>
<table class="MsoNormalTable" align="left">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td>
<p>Sr. No</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Name of
Organization</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Contact
Person</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p>1</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Akhil
Bharatiya Drishtiheen Kalyan
Sangh,</p>
<p> </p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Mr. Ajay M. Joshi</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p>2</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Amulya
Sahara</p>
<p> </p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Sh. Ashok Kumar Goyal</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p>3</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Andhjan
Kalyan Trust,</p>
<p> </p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Mr. Praful N. Vyas</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p>4</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Arushi</p>
<p> </p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Sh. Anil Mudgal</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p>5</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Astha</p>
<p> </p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Ms Radhika M. Alkazi,</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p>6</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Atmajyoti
Vikas Samitee</p>
<p> </p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Mrs. Priti Yadav</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p>7</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Blind
People's Association (Ahmedabad)</p>
<p> </p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Mr. R.P. Soni</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p>8</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Blind
Person's Association (Kolkata)</p>
<p> </p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Mr. Amiyo Biswas</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p>9</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Blind
Welfare Council</p>
<p> </p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Sh. Yusuf Kapadiya</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p>10</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Centre
For Internet And Society</p>
<p> </p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Sunil Abraham,</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p>11</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Devnar
Foundation for the Blind</p>
<p> </p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Dr. A. Saibaba Goud</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p>12</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Discipleship
Centre</p>
<p> </p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Mr. John A</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p>13</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Farook
College</p>
<p> </p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Prof. K. Kuttialikutty</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p>14</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Hans Raj Mahila Maha Vidyalaya</p>
<p> </p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Ms. Prabha Puran Sharma</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p>15</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Human
Development Institute</p>
<p> </p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Ms. R.C. Meena</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p>16</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Indian
Association for the Blind</p>
<p> </p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Mr. S.M.A. Jinnah,</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p>17</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Indira Mahila
Mandal Hudco New Nandeds</p>
<p> </p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Sh. Nagnath Ramji Kadam</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p>18</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Jamia
Millia Islamia</p>
<p> </p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Prof. Zubair Meenal,</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p>19</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Janta
Adarsh Andh Vidyalaya</p>
<p> </p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Mrs. Kalpana Sharma</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p>20</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Jawahar
Navodaya Vidyalaya</p>
<p> </p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Rajesh Gupta</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p>21</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Jyoti Sroat School</p>
<p> </p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Bertha G. Dkhar</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p>22</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>L.V.
Prasad Eye Institute</p>
<p> </p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Mr./Ms. Beula Christy</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p>23</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Lakshmi
Bai College</p>
<p> </p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Dr. Nalini Govind</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p>24</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Maulana</p>
<p>AzadLibrary(AligarhMuslim
<br />
Universit)</p>
<p> </p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Mr. Shakeel Ahmad Khan Mr. Shakeel Ahmad Khan</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p>25</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Mitra
Jyothi</p>
<p> </p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Ms. Madhu Singhal</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p>26</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Montfort
Centre For Education</p>
<p> </p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Mr. Michael Mathew</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p>27</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>National
Association for the Blind, Delhi</p>
<p> </p>
</td>
<td>
<p> </p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p>28</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>NAB-Phiroze</p>
<p>&NoshirMerwanjiRehabilitationCentre
for the Blind (Mount Abu)</p>
<p> </p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Sh. Vimal Kumar Dengla</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p>29</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>National
Association for the Blind (Uttarakhand)</p>
<p> </p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Mr. Shyam Dhanak,</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p>30</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>National
Association for the Blind (Chandigarh)</p>
<p> </p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Sh. Vinod Chadha</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p>31</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>National</p>
<p>Association
for the Blind (H.)</p>
<p> </p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Ms. Shalini Vats Kimta</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p>32</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>National
Association for the Blind (India)</p>
<p> </p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Sh. Suhas V. Karnik</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p>33</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>National
Association for the Blind(Jharkhand)</p>
<p> </p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Sh. Ar. Sahay</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p>34</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>National
Association for the Blind(Junagad)</p>
<p> </p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Ms. Rinaben V. Jasani</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p>35</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>National
Association for the Blind</p>
<p>(Karnataka),</p>
<p> </p>
</td>
<td>
<p>(Mrs.) Saroja Ramachandra</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p>36</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>National
Association for the Blind (Kerala)</p>
<p> </p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Sh. Manoj Kurian</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p>37</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>National
Association for the Blind (Sikkim Branch)</p>
<p> </p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Mr. Rajesh Verma</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p>38</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>National
Association for the Blind(West Bengal)</p>
<p> </p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Sh. Arup Chakroborty</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p>39</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>National
Federation of the Blind (Guwahati)</p>
<p> </p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Mohd. Imran Ali</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p>40</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>North Ex. Blind Welfare & Educational Society</p>
<p> </p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Sh. Subhash Garg</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p>41</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Orissa
Association for the Blind</p>
<p> </p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Sh. Bihari Nayak</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p>42</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Rajasthan
Netraheen Kalyan Sangh</p>
<p> </p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Sh. Jitendra Bhargava</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p>43</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Ramakrishna
Mission Blind Boys' Academy</p>
<p> </p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Sh. Sunilbaran Pattanayak</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p>44</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Saksham</p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Ms. Deepika Sood,</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p>45</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Salwan
Public School</p>
<p> </p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Mrs. Vandana Puri</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p>46</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Samarthanam
Trust for the Disabled</p>
<p> </p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Sh. Ganesh</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p>47</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Samrita
Trust</p>
<p> </p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Sh. Seetarama Sastry Nori</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p>48</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>School
for the Deaf Mutes Society</p>
<p> </p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Dr. Homiyar Mobedji</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p>49</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Score
Foundation,</p>
<p> </p>
</td>
<td>
<p>George Abraham</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p>50</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Shikshit
Yuva Sewa Samiti Basti</p>
<p> </p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Mr. Gopal Krishna Agarwal</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p>51</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Shree
Andhjan Vividhlaxi Talim Kendra,</p>
<p> </p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Sh. Prakash Mankodi</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p>52</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Shri
Navchetan Andhjan Mandal,</p>
<p> </p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Sh. Himanshu Sampura</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p>53</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Shri
Venkateswara College</p>
<p> </p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Ayesha Maliwal</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p>54</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Shri Vrajlal
Durlabhji Parekh Andh Mahila Vikas Grah,</p>
<p> </p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Sh. P.J. Mankodi</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p>55</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Shruti
Information Centre of Yashoda Charitable Trust</p>
<p> </p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Ms. Sonal Sena</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p>56</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Shubham</p>
<p> </p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Dr. Sangeeta Agarwal</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p>57</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Springdales
School</p>
<p> </p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Ms. Sonali Bose</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p>58</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>St.
Mary's School</p>
<p> </p>
</td>
<td>
<p> </p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p>59</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Tagore
International School,</p>
<p> </p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Ms. Aparna Sharma</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p>60</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>The
Blind Relief Association (Delhi)</p>
<p> </p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Sh. Kailash Chandra Pande</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p>61</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>University
of Hyderabad</p>
<p> </p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Dr. Madhireddy Anjaneyulu</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p>62</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Venu Eye
Institute & Research Centre</p>
<p> </p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Ms. Tanuja Joshi</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p>63</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Victoria
Memorial School for the Blind</p>
<p> </p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Mrs. Radha Subrahmanian</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p>64</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Welfare
Centre For Visually Handicapped,</p>
<p> </p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Mr. Profulla Kumar Rout</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p>65</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Welfare
Society for the Blind,</p>
<p> </p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Smt. Jharna Sur</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p>66</p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Xavier's
Resource Centre for the Visually Challenged (XRCVC)</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Dr. Sam Taraporevala</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p>67</p>
<p> </p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Sense
International (India)</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Akhil
Paul</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p>68</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>N.
Krishnaswamy Barrier Break Technologies (Mumbai)</p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Shilpi
Kapoor</p>
<p> </p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p>69</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>National
Association for the Blind (NAB) Bangalore</p>
<p> </p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Mr. Pruthviraj</p>
<p> </p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p>70</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>National
Federation for the Blind (Delhi)</p>
<p> </p>
</td>
<td>
<p>S.K.Rungta</p>
<p> </p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p>71</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Mitrajyoti
(Bangalore)</p>
<p> </p>
</td>
<td>
<p> </p>
<p>Madhu
Singhal</p>
<p> </p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p>72</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Accessability
(New Delhi)</p>
<p> </p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Vikas
Sharma</p>
<p> </p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p>73</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Alternative
Law Forum (Bangalore)</p>
<p> </p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Lawrence
Liang</p>
<p> </p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p>74</p>
</td>
<td>
<p> </p>
<p>Acrodelon
Technologies Pvt Ltd(Chennai)</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Rahul
Cherian</p>
<p> </p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p>75</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Enable
India</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Shanthi
Raghavan</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p>76</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>College
Students and Graduates Association of the Blind(Chennai)</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Ponmudi</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p>77</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Indian
Association for the Blind(Chennai)</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>S.M.A.
Jinnah </p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p>78</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Prayatna(Chennai
& Bangalore)</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Aruna
Sankaranarayanan</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p>79</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Worth
Trust, Katpadi (TN)</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>Venki/Mike</p>
<p> </p>
</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>
For more details visit <a href='http://editors.cis-india.org/accessibility/blog/follow-up-letter-in-support-of-wipo-treaty-for-reading-disabled'>http://editors.cis-india.org/accessibility/blog/follow-up-letter-in-support-of-wipo-treaty-for-reading-disabled</a>
</p>
No publishersachiaAccessibility2011-08-25T08:43:42ZBlog EntryNational Workshop on Web Accessibility, June 2009
http://editors.cis-india.org/events/national-workshop-on-web-accessibility-june-2009
<b>A workshop on web accessibility (for web developers only) in Bangalore</b>
<p></p>
<h3 style="text-align: justify;">The
Centre for Internet and Society (<a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/../">www.cis-india.org</a>)
and Samarthanam Trust for the Disabled (<a href="http://www.samarthanam.org/">www.samarthanam.org</a>)
are organizing a workshop on web accessibility for web developers from the
public and private sector from June 5 to 7, 2009. The workshop will take place at the Centre for Internet and Society office on Cunningham Road, Bangalore, between
09:30-17:30 hours each day.</h3>
<p style="text-align: justify;">The
workshop seeks to bring together practitioners from the private and public sector from all across the country. The
primary aim of this workshop is to demonstrate the importance of creating
accessible web sites and to educate the developers of government and private
web sites on how to incorporate accessibility features into new as well as
existing web sites.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">The
training will comprise both theory-oriented and practical sessions. The
trainers will be specialists in various aspects of web accessibility. The main
focus will be on WCAG 2.0 guidelines. The participants will be persons already
involved in developing web sites with good knowledge of HTML, XML, CSS, etc.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">In
addition to training web developers in accessibility, the workshop will also
serve as a platform for capacity building by training potential accessibility
trainers. Many of the sessions will be documented as lessons on accessibility
and put up on the CIS web site. As part
of one of the outcomes of the workshop, five inaccessible government web sites
will be identified and taken up for retrofitting with accessibility features
within the next few months.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><strong>Registration</strong></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">To register, please email Nirmita Narsimhan at nirmita@cis-india.org or call 080-4092-6283. There is no registration fee.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><strong>National Policy on Electronic Accessibility </strong></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">One
of the primary endeavors of several disability organizations around the country
is to have a national policy which governs electronic accessibility in India. CIS has
been a forerunner in advocating for the policy and is actively working with the
government in formulating the policy. As part of its advocacy efforts, CIS is
also involved in capacity building through organizing workshops and awareness
spreading in the private and public sectors.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"></p>
<p><strong>Trainers</strong></p>
<p><em>Rahul Gonsalves</em></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"></p>
<p align="left" style="text-align: justify;">Rahul
has been building accessible websites since 2005 (sample work at <a href="http://rahulgonsalves.com/projects/">http://rahulgonsalves.com/projects/</a>). He has been actively involved in promoting web and accessibility standards.
He spoke at the first international accessibility and technology
conference in India, Techshare 2008,
where he made a case for accessibility and conducted a workshop on
retrofitting accessibility to existing websites, a concern for most large
institutions with an existing online presence (slides available at <a href="http://www.barrierbreak.com/events-conference/techshare_presentations2008.php#track3">http://www.barrierbreak.com/events-conference/techshare_presentations2008.php#track3</a>)</p>
<p align="left" style="text-align: justify;">In September 2008, he presented a paper examining ways in which people with
various impairments - both physical and mental – engage with online content,
and demonstrated practical ways in which authors can make online content
accessible at the National Conference on ICT for Differently Abled People. He
is a supporter of the push for having a national policy for governing
electronic accessibility in India.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><em>Dinesh Kaushal</em></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"></p>
<p align="left" style="text-align: justify;">Dinesh has been involved in
the area of accessibility, specifically product development throughout his
career. He started with developing SAFA (Screen Access for All), which is the
first Indian language screen reader. He worked independently on this for a
year, during which time he got a good
understanding of the complete software development life cycle. SAFA was
envisioned to facilitate reading and writing in Indian languages at
affordable cost, with a view to enabling better jobs and education for persons with blindness
and low vision. SAFA is a unique software as it has to interact with other applications
to get information and present this information to the users in the format
convenient for them. SAFA is currently being used by blind persons in their
jobs, for their studies, and even for their exams and is available in 11 iIdian
languages for which text to speech synthesizers are available. His subsequent
work involved leading a team to develop a Daisy book player. Daisy books are
xml based marked-up digital books which provide efficient access to the
information for persons with blindness. His responsibilities were team
coordination, software requirement specification, design specification, and
monitoring testing. He is presently working with Code Factory as Lead Developer (Braille) for screen readers for the windows mobile platform. This software
enables persons with blindness to get access to mobile phones and PDAs, making
it possible to access information at par with their sighted colleagues. His role
is to provide this information via Braille displays. The Braille display allows
blind persons to read SMS, work with contacts and documents, navigate
with the help of GPS, etc using electronic Braille. This product is available
for more than 20 languages and is available all over the world.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><em>Ajay
Kolhatkar</em></p>
<p>
Dr. Ajay Kolhatkar co-leads the web usability and accessibility research at
the Web 2.0 Research Labs at SETLabs. Presently he manages the
evangelization of Web Accessibility Assessment and Remediation product
called Infosys iProwe developed by their lab. Ajay has a PhD in technology
marketing from IIT Bombay. His research there focused on Consumer's
Acceptance of Technology Based Services. The key research problem was
modeling the attitude-behaviour linkage for technology acceptance and the
critical role played by personality factors and situational factors. The
context for the study was Automated Teller Machines. Presently his research
interests include usability of self-service channels; technology adoption;
consumer behaviour in technology interfaces etc. An electrical engineer from
the College of Engineering, Pune and an MBA in Marketing from Symbiosis
Institute, Pune, Ajay has over 16 years of industry experience. He can be
contacted at <a class="moz-txt-link-abbreviated" href="mailto:Ajay_Kolhatkar@infosys.com">Ajay_Kolhatkar@infosys.com</a></p>
<h3>Proposed Sessions</h3>
<p><strong> Day 1</strong></p>
<p></p>
<p> 09:00-10:00: Introduction of participants, trainers and organisers<br />
10:00-11:30: Session 1</p>
<ul><li>
<p>Understanding disability;</p>
</li><li>
<p>
Working with disabilities -- The need for an accessible web</p>
</li></ul>
<p>
This session will familiarise the participants with different types of disabilities and the work arounds, in terms of assistive technologies or simple modifications which will enable them to work effectively using computers.</p>
<p>
11:30-11:45: Tea Break<br />
11:45-13:00: Session 2 - Building an Accessible Website</p>
<ul><li>
Laying Accessible Foundations</li><li>
Table-less layouts</li><li>
Well-structured markup</li><li>
Valid code<br /></li></ul>
<p>
13:00-14:00: Lunch<br />
14:00-15:30: Session 3--Group exercise<br />
Participants will have to identify and use semantic markup to describe different parts of a given layout. They will then have to write basic HTML/CSS code to present the website and validate it using online/desktop tools.<br />
15:30-15:45: Tea break<br />
15:45-17:15: Session 4 - Building an Accessible Website<br />
Participants will have a chance to use a variety of assistive technologies (screen readers/braille displays) and there will be an exercise followed be a group
discussion. Sequential Access/Role play will be conducted which will help them understand some of the problems related to electronic accessibility.<br />
17:15-17:30: Summary and winding up</p>
<p>
<strong>Day 2</strong><br />
09:15-11:00: Session 5 - Building an Accessible
Website</p>
<ul><li>
Removing Barriers</li><li>
Principle 1 - Perception</li><li>
Non-text content</li><li>
Audio/Visual content</li><li>
Adaptability</li><li>
Contrast</li></ul>
<p>
11:00-11:15: Tea break</p>
<p>11:15-13:00: Session 6 - Principle 2 - Operable</p>
<ul><li>
Keyboard Access</li><li>
Enough Time</li><li>
Seizures</li><li>
Navigable</li></ul>
<p>
13:00-14:00: Lunch</p>
<p>14:00-15:30: Group Exercise</p>
<ul><li>
Participants will be given online tools to evaluate colour contrast. They will have to evaluate and correct a layout for adequate contrast.</li><li>
Participants will have to prepare a transcript of a one-minute film.</li></ul>
<p>
15:30-15:45: Tea break</p>
<p>15:45:16:15: Session 7 - Accessibility in documents<br />
16:15-17:30: Session 8 - Principle 3 - Understandable, and Principle 4 - Robust</p>
<ul><li>
Natural Language</li><li>
Predictable</li><li>
Input Assistance</li><li>
Compatible</li></ul>
<p>
Winding up, feedback and clarification</p>
<p> </p>
<p><strong>Day 3</strong></p>
<p>09:15 -9:45: Flash accessibility</p>
<p>9:45-11:15: Group Exercise
- Putting it all together<br />
Participants will complete building the website(s)</p>
<p>11:15-11:30: Tea Break</p>
<p>11:30-12:45: Accessibility testing</p>
<p>Group Exercise
- Testing + Validating using automated testing tools as well as manual testing</p>
<ul><li>
The website that has been built will be validated to HTML, CSS and WCAG standards.</li><li>
All errors identified will have to be corrected in a participatory fashion.</li></ul>
<p>
</p>
<p>12:45-13:00: Wrapping up</p>
<p>Action points -- The road
ahead</p>
<p>13:15- 14:00: Lunch</p>
<h3>Videos</h3>
<embed height="250" width="250" allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" src="http://blip.tv/play/g_dIgYntIgA"></embed>
<embed height="250" width="250" allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" src="http://blip.tv/play/g_dIgYnvQQA"></embed>
<embed height="250" width="250" allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" src="http://blip.tv/play/g_dIgYnvZwA"></embed>
<embed height="250" width="250" allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" src="http://blip.tv/play/g_dIgYqNXgA"></embed>
<embed height="250" width="250" allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" src="http://blip.tv/play/g_dIgYqPKQA"></embed>
<embed height="250" width="250" allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" src="http://blip.tv/play/g_dIgYqQLwA"></embed>
<embed height="250" width="250" allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" src="http://blip.tv/play/g_dIgYqRaQA"></embed>
<embed height="250" width="250" allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" src="http://blip.tv/play/g_dIgYqVNgA"></embed>
<embed height="250" width="250" allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" src="http://blip.tv/play/g_dIgYqXJwA"></embed>
<embed height="250" width="250" allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" src="http://blip.tv/play/g_dIgYqyJQA"></embed>
<embed height="250" width="250" allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" src="http://blip.tv/play/g_dIgYq0BAA"></embed>
<embed height="250" width="250" allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" src="http://blip.tv/play/g_dIgYq1TAA"></embed>
<embed height="250" width="250" allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" src="http://blip.tv/play/g_dIgYq3TQA"></embed>
<embed height="250" width="250" allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" src="http://blip.tv/play/g_dIgYq6KAA"></embed>
<embed height="250" width="250" allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" src="http://blip.tv/play/g_dIgYrZYAA"></embed>
<embed height="250" width="250" allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" src="http://blip.tv/play/g_dIgYumNwA"></embed>
<embed height="250" width="250" allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" src="http://blip.tv/play/g_dIgYumNwA"></embed>
<embed height="250" width="250" allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" src="http://blip.tv/play/g_dIgYumNwA"></embed>
<embed height="250" width="250" allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" src="http://blip.tv/play/g_dIgYvNCAA"></embed>
<embed height="250" width="250" allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" src="http://blip.tv/play/g_dIgYvOOAA"></embed>
<embed height="250" width="250" allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" src="http://blip.tv/play/g_dIgYvQZwA"></embed>
<embed height="250" width="250" allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" src="http://blip.tv/play/g_dIgYv1DQA"></embed>
<embed height="250" width="250" allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" src="http://blip.tv/play/g_dIgYv2WQA"></embed>
<embed height="250" width="250" allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" src="http://blip.tv/play/g_dIgYyVJAA"></embed>
<embed height="250" width="250" allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" src="http://blip.tv/play/g_dIgYyWRAA"></embed>
<embed height="250" width="250" allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" src="http://blip.tv/play/g_dIgYy%2BSAA"></embed>
<embed height="250" width="250" allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" src="http://blip.tv/play/g_dIgY2eXQA"></embed>
<embed height="250" width="250" allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" src="http://blip.tv/play/g_dIgY2iBQA"></embed>
<embed height="250" width="250" allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" src="http://blip.tv/play/g_dIgY6UfAA"></embed>
<embed height="250" width="250" allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" src="http://blip.tv/play/g_dIgY6YXAA"></embed>
<embed height="250" width="250" allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" src="http://blip.tv/play/g_dIgY63cQA"></embed>
<embed height="250" width="250" allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" src="http://blip.tv/play/g_dIgY67GAA"></embed>
<embed height="250" width="250" allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" src="http://blip.tv/play/g_dIgY67dgA"></embed>
<embed height="250" width="250" allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" src="http://blip.tv/play/g_dIgY69KwA"></embed>
<embed height="250" width="250" allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" src="http://blip.tv/play/g_dIgY%2BCNQA"></embed>
<embed height="250" width="250" allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" src="http://blip.tv/play/g_dIgY%2BDIQA"></embed>
<embed height="250" width="250" allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" src="http://blip.tv/play/g_dIgY%2BGBQA"></embed>
<embed height="250" width="250" allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" src="http://blip.tv/play/g_dIgY%2BHDgA"></embed>
<embed height="250" width="250" allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" src="http://blip.tv/play/g_dIgY%2BncgA"></embed>
<embed height="250" width="250" allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" src="http://blip.tv/play/g_dIgY%2BocQA"></embed>
<embed height="250" width="250" allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" src="http://blip.tv/play/g_dIgY%2BrDwA"></embed>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>
For more details visit <a href='http://editors.cis-india.org/events/national-workshop-on-web-accessibility-june-2009'>http://editors.cis-india.org/events/national-workshop-on-web-accessibility-june-2009</a>
</p>
No publishersachiaEvent TypeAccessibility2011-08-31T10:51:12ZEventAccess India Meet-Up, May 2009
http://editors.cis-india.org/events/access-india-meet-up-may-2009
<b>Meet-up of members of Access India mailing list (open to invitees only)</b>
<p>Access India is an informal mailing list for the visually impaired
community in India, in which subscribers primarily discuss technology
and various aspects of its accessibility. Although the Access India
mailing list, originally started in 2002, was intended to be a forum for
discussing technology-related issues for the blind, it has over the
years expanded to cover a whole range of social, educational, cultural,
political
and other issues of significance to the visually impaired community in
India. It is one of the largest mailing
lists of blind persons in India and has roughly 500 members from all
over the
country. Members of the Access India community in various cities hold
informal gatherings from time to time. An annual national meeting of
Access India members is also held, where various issues affecting the
community are discussed in detail. </p>
<h3>Agenda</h3>
<p><br />2 PM: Welcome address by CIS, hosts of the meet.<br /><br />2:05 PM: A round of introduction by participants.<br /><br />2:30 PM: Presentation by representatives from AreaPal, a Bangalore-based social networking group founded by students. areapal allows users to locate and connect with people on the basis of their area and neighborhood. It is a genuine neighbourhood networking service. Apart from that, they also provide user-generated news, events and marketplace based information about a user’s area. For further information, please visit www.areapal.com.</p>
<p>2:40 PM: Question time.<br /><br />2:50 PM: Presentation by representatives from 3I Infotech, a company which recently launched e-Mudhra, an initiative to roll out digital signatures. The main focus of the discussion will be the accessibility of their product. For additional information, please visit http://www.e-mudhra.com/</p>
<p>3:00 PM: Question time.<br /><br />5. 3:10 PM: Presentation by representatives from iVolunteer, an organization that matches volunteers seeking volunteering opportunities<br />with organizations and individuals looking for volunteers in Bangalore. To learn more about the organization, please visit www.ivolunteer.in</p>
<p><br />3:20 PM: Question time.<br /><br />6. 3:30 PM: Introduction to Inclusive planet. Inclusive Planet is in the process of building the largest online portal for disabled persons in India. It is intended to be a comprehensive portal containing various resources including employment resources, educational resources, a match-making <br />channel, accessible books section, discussion boards, resources for medical facilities, sports and entertainment center, etc. We hope to have a <br />representative from Inclusive Planet demonstrate the site for us, inform us about its scope and expansion plans, and tell us about how we can contribute toward making the site totally accessible. Please visit http://www.inclusiveplanet.org/</p>
<p><br />3:50 PM: Question time.<br /><br />4:00 PM: Tea followed by open discussion on technology.<br /><br />4:45 PM: Vote of thanks and conclusion.</p>
<p>
For more details visit <a href='http://editors.cis-india.org/events/access-india-meet-up-may-2009'>http://editors.cis-india.org/events/access-india-meet-up-may-2009</a>
</p>
No publishersachiaEvent TypeAccessibility2011-08-31T10:50:37ZEventCan you read me?
http://editors.cis-india.org/news/can-you-read-me
<b>Article by Sahana Charan in the Bangalore Mirror, 11 March 2009</b>
<p>Over 90% of govt websites can’t be accessed by people with disabilities; A Bangalore-based social research organisation has now initiated a nation wide campaign to make the web more accessible to them.</p>
<p>-----</p>
<p>Would it come as a shock to you that more than 90 per cent of government websites, including those dealing with social welfare issues, can be of no use to visually or hearing impaired persons or even some senior citizens? At least, that is what the Bangalore-based Centre for Internet and Society (CIS) found out when it did a random check on 23 websites of important government organisations. Of the 23 websites that were checked, 21 failed to meet basic standards which could make them accessible to persons with disabilities including those with visual and hearing impairment and motor disabilities.</p>
<p>The study revealed that The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and the Indian Institute of Management-Bangalore (IIM-B) websites were the only ones that were designed to meet the needs of all persons including those with disabilities.</p>
<p>When Nirmitha Narasimhan, Programme Manager at CIS, who is visually-impaired herself, ran an automated tool over these websites, she found that most of them failed to meet basic standards. “We carried out accessibility testing on the homepages of 23 sites using an automated tool and of these 21 failed automated verification and only the RBI and IIM-B websites passed verification on the basis of the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) Priority 1 checkpoints. But even these websites had some problems. Overall the sites that failed the fewest tests were RBI, IIM-B, RTI and CMC Vellore,” she said.</p>
<h3>Access for All</h3>
<p>Considering that some of the websites that failed the accessibility test were important for all citizens, including the Railways, Lok Sabha, Rajya Sabha, RTI and National Informatics Centre (NIC) websites, the research organisation decided to take this exercise forward by launching a national campaign for electronic accessibility. Their campaign has been so successful that they are now in talks with the central government to formulate a draft policy on electronic accessibility.</p>
<p>“Persons who have disabilities such as blindness or low vision, deafness, cognitive impairment and so on are unable to browse through websites like other persons, since they are unable to see graphics, flash presentations, hear audio clips etc. They use technologies such as screen readers (like Jaws and NVDA which read out whatever appears on the screen for a blind user) or other kinds of devices to perform the functionalities associated with using the computers. For deaf persons, it is necessary to have captioning for an audio clip to tell them what is being played,” says Nirmitha. But she adds that even for assistive technologies to be used, the websites need to have built-in features that will make them accessible to everyone.</p>
<h3>Guidelines</h3>
<p>“Most websites have features such as graphics which cannot be interpreted by technologies such as screen readers. In such a case, the website creator has to take care to give alternative texts which describe what the graphic is about. For instance, under a picture of a dog on a website, there should also be a line describing the picture,” adds Nirmitha, who is now working with web developers across the country to create awareness about guidelines for creating a website.</p>
<p>The World Wide Web Consortium (www) has come out with guidelines on how to build websites which are accessible to persons using assistive technologies. These guidelines are called the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) and address the needs of all disabilities and inabilities. “In the US, UK, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Germany and many other countries, it is mandatory to implement these guidelines for all websites. Since ours is an internet-savvy nation, it is high time these rules were made mandatory here,” says Nirmitha.</p>
<p>CIS has conducted a series of workshops for web developers from organisations including NIC, JNU and many voluntary agencies so that they could incorporate WCAG. In Karnataka, all government websites are designed by NIC, so it goes without saying that none of them are disabled-friendly.</p>
<h3>Their Own Site Too</h3>
<p>Karnataka has over 9.4 lakh persons with disabilities of whom at least 10-15 per cent are able to use assistive technology and can access the net. In Bangalore city alone, close to one lakh persons are disabled and quite a few of them have knowledge of computers.</p>
<p>But it is a pity that the website of the Directorate for the Welfare of the Disabled and Senior Citizens cannot be accessed by people who need to use it the most.</p>
<p>Forget being disabled-friendly, the website has not been updated since 2007 and the gallery section still shows pictures of former chief minister H D Kumaraswamy.</p>
<h3>What the guidelines say</h3>
<p>For sites which have graphics, alternative text should be given at the bottom describing the graphic for the benefit of visually impaired persons.</p>
<ol><li>For the hearing impaired, video clips should be accompanied by text running at the bottom of the clip so that they will know what is being said.</li><li>Flickering text that cannot be deciphered by a screen reader (a technology used by the visually impaired that reads out test on the computer screen aloud) should be avoided.</li><li>For those with motor impairment, options can be given to avoid the use of mouse and where only one single key could be used. <br /></li></ol>
<p>
-----</p>
<p> To read the article at the Bangalore Mirror website, click <a class="external-link" href="http://www.bangaloremirror.com/index.aspx?page=article&sectid=10&contentid=20090311200903110104094299c3f999f&sectxslt=&pageno=1">here</a>. </p>
<p>
For more details visit <a href='http://editors.cis-india.org/news/can-you-read-me'>http://editors.cis-india.org/news/can-you-read-me</a>
</p>
No publishersachiaAccessibility2011-04-02T16:11:00ZNews ItemWorkshop for Web Developers on Web Accessibility
http://editors.cis-india.org/accessibility/publications/workshop
<b></b>
<p>
For more details visit <a href='http://editors.cis-india.org/accessibility/publications/workshop'>http://editors.cis-india.org/accessibility/publications/workshop</a>
</p>
No publisherroysonConferenceWorkshopAccessibility2011-08-23T22:52:40ZFolderDepartment of Information Technology Meeting on a National Policy on E-Accessibility
http://editors.cis-india.org/openness/blog-old/meeting-by-the-dit-on-a-national-policy-on-e-accessibility-at-delhi-on-jan-30th-2009
<b>On 30 January 2009, the Department of Information Technology hosted a meeting in New Delhi bringing together important stakeholders to discuss the issue of electronic accessibility for the disabled and persons with special needs in India.</b>
<p>Creating a barrier free internet is vital to creating a pluralistic and
democratic virtual environment, where all groups irrespective of
disability or levels of literacy are able to access culture and
knowledge goods and services which are available on the internet today. Since its inception last year, CIS has been campaigning for legislative, administrative and legal interventions in the area of web accessibility for the print disabled and working with different groups towards the common goal of having a National Policy on Electronic Accessibility in India.</p>
<p>On 30 January, the Department of Information Technology (DIT) called a meeting of all stakeholders to discuss the issue of web accessibility for disabled persons and persons with special needs. The meeting was attended by 34 key persons from the Government and private organisations around India. Sunil Abraham (Director--Advocacy, CIS) and Nirmita Narasimhan (Programme Manager, CIS) were amongst the attendees (a complete list of attendees is given below).</p>
<p>The meeting was chaired by N. Ravi Shankar, Joint Secretary, DIT, who in his opening remarks briefed the gathering about the initiatives of the Government in this area. He talked about the Government’s goal of providing Universal Accessibility and Internet for all. He informed the gathering that the DIT had already initiated schemes for ICT empowerment of visually impaired/hearing impaired children; under these schemes, 21 ICT Vocational Centers had already been set up and 100 additional ICT vocational centers would be set up in phase II. Additionally, he explained that the issue of Universal Accessibility had been internationally addressed at the Internet Governance Forum (IGF) 2008 held in December 2008 in Hyderabad. He stressed the need for initiating inclusive developmental activities in the e-governance programme of DIT and language initiatives of TDIL (Technology Development for Indian Languages), in order to increase coverage and diversity, culminating in education for all alongside Internet for all.</p>
<p>Dr. Govind, Senior Director and Head of Department, E-Infrastructure and Internet Governance Division in the Ministry, highlighted the issue of web accessibility for visually impaired and other differently able persons and the need for initiating a concrete action plan for the same.</p>
<p>Javed Abidi, Director, National Center for Promotion of Employment for Disabled People talked at length about the need for web accessibility and proposed that the government should set a time line within which all existing government web sites should be made standards compliant. All new web sites should be created keeping compliance with WCAG 2.0 in mind right from the start and proposed that for existing web sites, we should adopt a staged approach and aim at ensuring complete compliance at least by 2010-2012.</p>
<p>Ms. Neeta Verma, Sr. Technical Director, NIC gave a presentation on the issues related with making web accessibility universal. She said that NIC has formulated guidelines for government websites, in association with DIT and DARPG. Compliance to these guidelines shall make Indian government websites Usable, User Centric and Universally Accessible. She proposed that even the Manual of Procedures (MoP) used in the Govt. should mandate Universal Web Access for Government business and day to day activities. Websites should not only be designed once for accessibility but also need to be sustainable in the long run.</p>
<p>All attendees gave their inputs on the issue of web accessibility. Shri Jaijit from Sun Microsystems stressed the fact that the need for standards was not essential for disabled persons alone, but was necessary for other groups as well, such as illiterate persons. Ms.Shilpi Kapoor from Barrier Break Technologies mentioned that most government web sites had to firstbe be made html compliant in order to be standards compliant and stressed the need for training, resource generation and sensitization. Shri Minocha, Director, NAB felt that a law similar to the one in USA should be implemented which mandates that any web site developed had to be Universally Accessible. He asked the Government. to look at daisy guidelines, digital library and procurement policy for differently abled persons. He strongly urged the Government to take into account not merely standards of website accessibility, but also brouser standards, document standards etc, since an accessible web site was not of much use if the content posted on it was in an inaccessible format. He also appreciated the efforts of NIC and C-DAC towards working for open source and cited the example of the Venezualian Government. He proposed that DIT should initiate a technology development or customization project in this area. Shri Vijaiy Krishnamani from Infosys stressed on the need for creating a common simple usable interface rather than multiple types. </p>
<p>Shri Vijay Kapur from Microsoft proposed for implementation of WCAG1.0 & 2.0 standards to bring out interactivity in web content like Arya and the Clint side document accessibility through the daisy consortium. </p>
<p>Shri Rajesh Aggarwal, CEO, NIXI offered complete support for all initiatives in the area of web accessibility and voiced the opinion that all software produced out of public funds should be made available in the public domain so as to encourage research and innovation. In addition to policy advocacy, he was also supporting a capacity building and awareness workshop on web accessibility for web developers from all over the country which was being organized by CIS in Ghaziabad from Feb 16th-18th. Smt.Jayalakshmi Chittor of CSDMS proposed that an audit process should be evolved to check government web sites for WCAG 2.0 compliance and cited the example of Malta for policy in this area. Some other issues which were stressed time and again by other attendees were the legal mandating of adherence to standards within a fixed time period, adequate representation of Indian language in Unicode format, adherence to WCAG 2.0 and not merely 1.0, supporting voice enabled web sites etc. Sunil Abraham Director Centre for Internet & Society (CIS) lauded the DIT/MCIT for the timely and critical accessibility initiative and strongly endorsed the suggestion to create a national policy document mandating accessibility for all publicly funded electronic infrastructure. CIS offered to provide a comparative analysis of national electronic accessibility policies from developed and developing countries and also prepare a draft policy for DIT/MCIT. Further, he urged DIT/MCIT to advocate for the adoption of the proposed WIPO Treaty for improved access for the blind, visually impaired and other reading disabled put forward by the World Blind Union and knowledge Ecology International.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>After the round of discussions the following recommendations were made to the DIT/MCIT:</p>
<p>i) The Government should formulate a national policy to mandate necessary guidelines so that the web sites are standards compliant for universal web accessibility.</p>
<p>ii) Steps should be taken for sensitization and awareness generation towards this issue through trainings, publicity, workshops, conferences.</p>
<p>iii) R&D projects should be initiated for development of screen readers in Indian languages and other tools for universal web access.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Attendees</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Shri N. Ravi Shanker, Joint Secretary, DIT, New Delhi - Chairman <br />Dr. Govind, Sr. Director, DIT, New Delhi<br />Shri Mohan Ram, ED, ERNET India, New Delhi <br />Shri Rajesh Aggarwal, Additional CEO, NIXI, New Delhi<br />Shri Javed Abidi, Director, National Center for Promotion of Employment for Disabled People (NCPEDP, New Delhi<br />Shri Dipender Minocha, Director, NAB, R.K. Puram, New Delhi<br />Ms. Neeta Verma, Sr. Technical Director, NIC, New Delhi<br />Shri A. Bandopadhyay, GM, Webel Mediatronics Ltd., Kolkata<br />Mr. Sunil Abraham, Director – Policy, Centre for Internet & Society, Bangalore<br />Ms. Shilpi Kapoor, Founder and Managing Director, Net Systems Informatics (I) Pvt. Ltd. and Barrier Break Technologies, Mumbai<br />Shri Vijay Kapur, Microsoft India, New Delhi<br />Mr. Rahul Gonsalves, Web Accessibility Consultant, Bangalore<br />Jyotindra V.Mehta, Advisory Systems Consultant, IBM Global Services India<br />Mr. Zamir Dhale, Sense International India Office, Ahmedabad Gujarat<br />Shri Jaijit Bhattacharya, M/s Sun Microsystems, New Delhi<br />Ms. Jayalakshmi Chittor, CSDMS, Noida, U.P<br />Shri Manoj Jain, TDIL, DIT, New Delhi<br />Ms. Gitanjali Sah, UN Solution Exchange, New Delhi<br />Shri Pradeep Gupta, Managing Director, Cyber Media India Ltd., Gurgaon, Haryana<br />Shri Vijay Krishnamani, Infosys, New Delhi<br />Shri Ajai Kumar, C-DAC, Pune<br />Shri Indranil Das Roy, M/s Webel, Kolkata<br />Shri Deepak Maheshwari, Microsoft India , New Delhi<br />Shri Vikas Goswami, Microsoft India, New Delhi<br />Ms. Helen Mahtani, Programmer, NCPEDP, New Delhi<br />Shri Muthamma B. Devaya, Senior Program officer, NCPEDP, New Delhi<br />Ms. Nirmitha Naresimhan, Centre for Internet & Society, Bangalore<br />Ms. Tejal Tiwari, ERNET India, New Delhi<br />Shri D.P. Misra, NIC, New Delhi<br />Shri Sachin Rizal, Sense International (India) Ltd., Ahmedabad Gujarat<br />Ms. Ritu Srivastava, CSDMS, Noida<br />Shri Santosh Kumar Gupta, CSDMS, Noida, UP<br />Shri Rajan Varada, UN Solution Exchange, New Delhi<br />Shri S.K. Aggarwal, Scientist ‘F’, DIT, New Delhi - Convenor<br /> </p>
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For more details visit <a href='http://editors.cis-india.org/openness/blog-old/meeting-by-the-dit-on-a-national-policy-on-e-accessibility-at-delhi-on-jan-30th-2009'>http://editors.cis-india.org/openness/blog-old/meeting-by-the-dit-on-a-national-policy-on-e-accessibility-at-delhi-on-jan-30th-2009</a>
</p>
No publishernirmitaMeetingAccessibility2011-09-22T12:32:54ZBlog EntryAccessible websites could become a reality
http://editors.cis-india.org/news/accessible-websites-could-become-a-reality
<b>Article by L. Subramani in the Deccan Herald, 11 February 2009</b>
<p>Centre for Internet and Society (CIS), a Bangalore-based NGO that researches on Internet's influence on families and individuals, had reported that about 99 per cent of government websites have failed in meeting with the accessibility guidelines issued by W3C (World Wide Web Consortium).</p>
<p>As Kanchan Pamnani speaks about web accessibility, she relates to us an old story learnt at school. A crane called his long-time friend, a wolf, for dinner and showed a tall, narrow jar that had delicious fishes in it. Unable to put its head inside and eat, the bewildered wolf returned home hungry, as the crane enjoyed putting its long beak inside the jar and tasted its content.</p>
<p>“What’s the point in information being available on the Internet? The visually challenged can’t access the content all the same, since the design and presentation of websites are not friendly to the screen reader software they use to access them through PC and laptops. And they need this the most, since it saves their time and energy when they get things done online,” Ms Pamnani said.</p>
<p>Despite being home to the world’s largest visually impaired population, the problem of inaccessible websites has been common in India. What hurts Ms Pamnani, a visually challenged lawyer and folks like her is the irony that several website developers in India comply with accessibility norms while creating websites for their foreign clients for fear of their product getting rejected and ignore the same while making sites for home-based organisations.</p>
<p>Some months ago, Centre for Internet and Society (CIS), a Bangalore-based NGO that researches on Internet's influence on families and individuals, had reported that about 99 per cent of government websites have failed in meeting with the accessibility guidelines issued by W3C (World Wide Web Consortium). It had highlighted CMC Velore, RBI and IIMB as some of the institutions whose websites are either too difficult or impossible for persons with visual impairment to access with their special screen reading software.</p>
<p>“Someone has to take responsibility for this situation,” Pamnani mentioned. “Given that people from the IT community have created these websites, they will have to take the blame.”</p>
<p>Screen readers, which the blind use to get content of a computer in voice, comprises of text to speech engine (a sort of virtual larynx) and the software that allows users to interface with the system. However, graphically rich webpages or features that are primarily visual in nature become a potential minefield to the screen reader since it doesn’t know how that information can be rendered “readable” to the TTS engine.</p>
<p>Mindful of this bottleneck, the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C), which play the role of rule-makers in the way the web functions, designed a set of guidelines web developers must use while creating websites. For instance, it calls for giving heading levels which makes screen reader users to press “Shift and the number key depending on which heading level (one to five) they want to reach” and straight away go to the heading instead of going line by line.</p>
<p>For webpages to be fully accessible, the guidelines ask developers to use HTML tags and create alternative, verbally described pages (to the graphically rich ones) that can be read by screen readers. Probably fearing the labour it takes, developers of websites are alleged to be overlooking the guidelines and disability activists say that the negligence is proving to be too costly for them.</p>
<p>“These days, most of the government documents are available on the Internet,” said Javed Abidi, Chairman, National Centre for Promotion of Employment for Disabled Persons (NCPEDP). “The technology is available and there is also the necessary awareness, but web developers seem to be taking this issue too lightly.”</p>
<p>Abidi and Pamnani have been talking about the situation with NASSCOM and were close to hosting a Dharna in front of the venue where the industry body was hosting its leadership summit on Wednesady. However, the protest was called off since NASSCOM agreed to focus on the issue.</p>
<p>“As a first step, the body has agreed to make their own website accessible,” Abidi, the New Delhi-based, wheelchair-bound disability activist, said. “Then they have agreed to urge their members to follow suit. Also, despite their attempts to take up accessibility as a CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) issue, we want them to consider this as a rights issue, since the United Nations Convention for Rights of Persons With Disability (UNCRPD), which India has signed and ratified, states (in article 9) that access to information is a right.”</p>
<p>So Pamnani and several other visually challenged users of the Internet feel the day when they can log on to the website of an online store and purchase anything of their choice isn’t far away. </p>
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<p>To read the article at the Deccan Herald website, click <a class="external-link" href="http://www.deccanherald.com/Content/Feb112009/cyberspace20090210117713.asp">here</a>.</p>
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For more details visit <a href='http://editors.cis-india.org/news/accessible-websites-could-become-a-reality'>http://editors.cis-india.org/news/accessible-websites-could-become-a-reality</a>
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No publishersachiaAccessibility2011-04-02T16:17:26ZNews Item