Activities

Navratri is one of the most celebrated festivals in our country, and it brings joy and enthusiasm to everyone. This year, Signing Hands Foundation was proud to sponsor the special Deaf-Accessible Navratri event organized by NNMD in Mumbai. It was heartwarming to see the Deaf Community come together in large numbers and celebrate this vibrant festival with their loved ones. Making festivals accessible for all truly captures the spirit and joy of these occasions.

SHF was honoured to be part of the Sign Language Day 2024 celebrations, led by Union Minister of State for Social Justice & Empowerment, Shri B.L. Verma, and organized by DEPwD & ISLRTC. With the launch of 100 foundational ISL concept videos for Class 6, the addition of 2,500 new signs to the ISL Dictionary, and the release of inspiring Deaf Role Model videos developed by us, this day marks a big step towards inclusive education and employment. We are proud to collaborate with the Ministry to support initiatives that strengthen accessibility for the Deaf Community.

We at Signing Hands Foundation were honoured to have partnered with Apraava Energy to bring the basics of Indian Sign Language to their workplace. It’s inspiring to see organisations like these taking proactive steps to break communication barriers and create an inclusive environment.

We express our heartfelt gratitude to all the participants for their enthusiasm. We look forward to collaborating on more such initiatives and continuing this journey towards inclusivity.

The National Workshop was conducted by the four organizations on 13th and 14th August, 2022 from 9:30 AM to 6:00PM where Deaf Leaders from different states of India were invited to share their knowledge, opinions and suggestions for the drafting of National Policy for Persons With Disabilities.

The four organisations contributed their responsibilities. National Association of the Deaf (NAD) took care of the Invitation Letters and Correspondences with the Delegates. Ali Yavar Jung National Institute of Speech and Hearing Disabilities (Divyangjan) (AJYNISHD) provided the Conference Hall, Tea/Coffee/Snack and Lunch for both days. National Centre for Promotion of Employment for Disabled People (NCPEDP) covered the flight and train expenses. Signing Hands Foundation (SHF) provided the accommodation, breakfast and dinner.

The Workshop started off with the National Anthem video created by ISH News. After individual introductions were made, Kanchan Pamnani, Advocate & Solicitor shared her perspectives on RPWD 2016 and what we should contribute to the National Policy.

Over the course of 2 days Deaf leaders and interpreters gave a presentation on each chapter mentioned in the Draft policy. After discussing the chapter and its shortcomings in detail, the attendees provided their recommendations to improve the policies.

On the first day the following chapters were covered:

• ‘Education’ was covered by Mr Sibaji Panda & Mr Sunil Sahasrabudhe.
• ‘Health’ by Pallavi Kulshrestha.
• ‘Skill Development and Employment’ by Arun C Rao.
• ‘Accessibility’ by Aqil Chinoy.

The first day was concluded after a round of discussions, discussing the various suggestions made for the aforementioned chapters.

The attendees then went back to the accommodation provided by SHF where after dinner, an impromptu discourse was held.

On the second day the following chapters were covered:

• ‘Lack of data and invisibility of persons with disabilities.’ by Mr Akshay of NCPEDP.
• ‘Disability Certificate’ by Mr.A. S. Narayanan.
• ‘Sports, Culture and Recreation’ by Isaac K.C and Babu Eapen.
• ‘Protection of Rights or PWD’s and other policy measures’ with Dr. Renuka Rameshan.
• ‘Women & Children’ by Saudamini Pethe.

The day ended with a summary of all the recommendations for the Draft Policy.