Jerina Chinghoihvung
(The writer is the Coordinator at Deafblind Resource Centre (DbRC), Shishu Sarothi)
With 'Helen Keller Day" around the corner on the 27th of June, I would like to shine a light on the journey and inspiring story of two of our aspiring adults – Shishu Sarothi's own Helen Kellers!
For some of us, Helen Keller was not just an author, educator or an advocate who inspired us with her many achievements and victories in life but someone who showered us with new hope and showed the way to many people with deafblindness and other disabilities across the globe.
Deafblindness is a unique disability that combines varying degrees of both hearing and visual impairment. All individuals with deafblindness experience extreme challenges in communication, socialization, mobility and accessing information about the world around them. As much as 95 per cent of what we learn is through our vision and hearing. It is often said that "the world of a person with deafblindness extends to the reach of their fingertips". Can you imagine what it is like to be a deafblind?
Nikhil Bansal, a young adult with deafblindness, has taught us to see the good and positive in everything. He aspires to be a successful businessman just like his dad when he grows older. Low vision and hearing loss has not stopped the young enthusiastic artist from dreaming big. Besides painting, Nikhil also loves travelling, meeting new people and has been confidently participating in national and international conferences, awareness meeting where he boldly advocates for accessibility, inclusion and rights, and in doing so, represents many other people with deafblindness across the country
Gobinda Majumdar is another inspiring adult with total deafblindness who never ceases to amaze us with his confidence and talents. He has learnt skills from his family members and can craft a mind-boggling array of cane and bamboo products, from baskets to fishing traps to bamboo doors to winnow and threshing basket. He can navigate through waist deep water and help his brother in harvesting their jute crop and weaving strong jute ropes that he sells in the local market. This hardworking and talented young man is constantly busy doing something all year round, and this is evident from his rough and cracked hands. Residing in the interior part of Assam in Gumi, besides handicrafts, he helps his brother and single mother, and enjoys getting his hands dirty in all the agricultural and cultivation activities in the family-owned paddy field.
It is estimated that there are around 5 lakh people with deafblindness in India. Deafblindness can be classified into 4 categories - those who totally Deaf and totally Blind, totally Blind and partially Deaf, totally Deaf and partially Blind, and those who are partially Deaf and Partially Blind.
The Sparsh program for persons with Deafblindness (Db) and Multi-Sensory Impairment (MSI) and Multiple Disability (MD) at Shishu Sarothi, has around 60 persons with Deafblindness, MSI/MD enrolled in the programme where they receive services through centre-based, home-based and community-based rehabilitation. Family members are also trained in need-based skills like sign languages, braille, making teaching learning materials etc. Besides education, rehabilitation and vocational training, the service users are provided with nutrition and medicine support kits, aids and appliances. They are also supported with clinical assessment and in acquiring disability certificates/UDID cards that enable them to avail appropriate benefits under different Government schemes.
Additionally, Shishu Sarothi, also being a Deafblind Regional Centre of North East India, has been organizing a series of Regional and State level trainings and sensitizations for various stakeholders where adults with deafblindness and MSI and parent members from Parents Network have been actively engaging in all the training and sensitization programs, self-advocating for their rights and concerns faced by PwDs and their families'
Apart from Gobinda and Nikhil, we have a number of other students enrolled in the Sparsh programme at the Deafblind Resource Centre of Shishu Sarothi.
"The best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched. They must be felt with the heart"
– Helen Keller.