An internet centre set up by an NGO in Chennai is virtually a boon for the visually challenged as it has special software that they can use to trawl through cyber space free of cost. Thanks to the dedicated efforts of 36-year-old Govind Krishnan, who is partially blind, the organisation Nethrodaya was launched five years ago.
"I know the problems a blind person faces and wanted to do something for others like me," said Krishnan. "This is the only such centre in the country where they can walk in and browse free of charge," he added.
This has been made possible thanks to technology major Sify, which has provided the centre unlimited access to the internet. Former Union minister Dayanidhi Maran inaugurated the facility in October last year.
The centre has JAWS (Job access with speech), an audio-based software that allows the visually challenged to use computers at will. When it is switched on, JAWS reads everything on the screen, including web pages.
The software was created due to efforts of the Bill Gates Foundation and Freedom Scientific, a group comprising individuals engaged in research. "This is of great help to the blind," Krishnan said.
"Other browsing centres are only equipped to cater to normal persons and this is what makes our centre unique." The centre is located at Mogappair and is being run out of a rented premises. The state government has given the NGO land at a site about two km from the current location. "God willing, we hope to construct our own building in a year," Krishnan said.
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