News

Volume 8 Issue 3 - February 01, 2011

N.A.S.S.S.C.O.M.’s Disability Advisory Group to focus on accessibility this year

D.N.I.S. News Network, India: The Disability Advisory Group (D.A.G.) of N.A.S.S.C.O.M. had its 2nd meeting on January 22, almost a year after it was formed. It had met once last year but after that, no other meeting could take place.

The developments and activities of the last year were discussed along with the action plan for 2011. Employment was the focus for 2010 and Dr. Arpita Sutradhar of the N.A.S.S.C.O.M. Foundation recounted the achievements, which included awareness and sensitisation campaigns, job fair for people with disabilities among others. In the past year, N.A.S.S.C.O.M. Foundation has also come out with a handbook called 'Inclusivity at workplace' on workplace policies for empowering employees with disabilities.

The Group also discussed the work plan for 2011. It was decided that accessibility would be the focus for this year. Raja Shanmugam of Mindtree Foundation, who is also a member of the Disability Working Committee of the N.A.S.S.C.O.M. Foundation, outlined a threefold approach to the issue: Web accessibility, accessibility to data and application sites and physical accessibility of buildings and workplaces.

D.A.G.’s Chairman, Pradeep Gupta reiterated the need to push accessibility and said that this should become a mandate for all member companies. Som Mittal, President, N.A.S.S.C.O.M. said that the Foundation could use the existing N.A.S.S.C.O.M. forums to get the message across.

A yearly plan for D.A.G. would be made soon and will be circulated. Javed Abidi, Honorary Director, National Centre for Promotion of Employment for Disabled People (N.C.P.E.D.P.); Dipendra Manocha of D.A.I.S.Y. Consortium; Shilpi Kapoor, Managing Director, BarrierBreak Technologies and Nirmita Narasimhan of the Centre for Internet and Society attended this meeting, among others.

The next meeting of D.A.G. is scheduled for April 16.

Click here to read minutes of the D.A.G. meeting.(Word - 44 KB)