In 2017, the National Programme for Control of Blindness (NPCB) stated that India alone had 12 million blind individuals out of the global total of 39 million, making the country home to one-third of the world's blind population.
"For many visually-challenged individuals, comprehending image-based concepts like the water cycle, or even the relative distance between two cities or states becomes very difficult. Even if they have access to alternative methods of education like tactile graphics, they continue to be dependent on another person to help them through it. We wanted to eliminate this dependency and bridge the gap of access," Chandni Rajendran tells The Better India.
Along with her batch mate and friend, Saloni Mehta, Chandni began Tactopus in April 2018. The pair have already impacted hundreds of lives through various schools and independent organisations.
Designers from IIT Bombay, the two discovered their calling as postgraduate students. "We both wanted to work in the area of social development and design, and the opportunity arrived when I got to intern at Xavier's Resource Centre for the Visually Challenged. It was this experience that opened me to reality and pushed me to think beyond the existing technology," says Chandni.
"For many visually-challenged individuals, comprehending image-based concepts like the water cycle, or even the relative distance between two cities or states becomes very difficult. Even if they have access to alternative methods of education like tactile graphics, they continue to be dependent on another person to help them through it. We wanted to eliminate this dependency and bridge the gap of access," Chandni Rajendran tells The Better India.
Along with her batch mate and friend, Saloni Mehta, Chandni began Tactopus in April 2018. The pair have already impacted hundreds of lives through various schools and independent organisations.
Designers from IIT Bombay, the two discovered their calling as postgraduate students. "We both wanted to work in the area of social development and design, and the opportunity arrived when I got to intern at Xavier's Resource Centre for the Visually Challenged. It was this experience that opened me to reality and pushed me to think beyond the existing technology," says Chandni.
"Our research went on for two years before we launched. From understanding the behavioural patterns of these children to inculcating all the aspects catering to their abilities and strengths, the project was made to be inclusive and engaging. These books and cards have multi-sensory imprints and are paired with an interactive audio companion on their mobiles, which guide the students in real-time to understand every word, image or sentence they touch," explains Saloni.
Source and Credit : https://www.thebetterindia.com/178695/bengaluru-tactile-books-graphics-education-disability-india/