Tech breakthrough to help blind 'read' Hindi

LUCKNOW: His is an amazing story. Atthe tender age of eight years, glaucoma pitched a scared Dinesh Kaushal’sworld into darkness. Twenty years later, Dinesh has helped developthe world’s first ‘Hindi screen reader’, which willrevolutionise the manner in which the visually challenged access the informationsuperhighway.A Java certified MSc in computer science (Yes, you readright), Dinesh has been a key component in the collaboration between NationalAssociation for the Blind (NAB), Delhi, and a Lucknow-based software developmentcompany, in building the ‘Hindi screen reader’. The screen readerpicks up text (including off the Internet) on any computer screen being accessedby a visually challenged person and then reads it out. What is revolutionary isthat for the first time electronic text in Hindi can be easily and effortlesslyaccessed by the visually challenged. And the first application the whiz-teamfrom NAB and the software firm are thinking of is enabling the lakhs of visuallychallenged government staffers across India.Dinesh’s story isas awe-inspiring as this invention is exciting.After losing hiseyesight at the age of eight, Dinesh was shifted to a special school for theblind where he started off from the nursery once again and studied till classX.“What I didn’t like about the special school was thatthey didn’t teach mathematics and science after class VIII and even whatwas taught till class VII was not of a very good standard,� recountedDinesh. “I liked economics, so though I studied humanities till class XII(in a school for children with sight), I shifted to the commerce stream incollege. There, I faced problems with mathematics, so I decided to study mathson my own,� said Dinesh. His MSc in computer science is evidence of thisvictory, especially in light of the fact that Dinesh interned with MicrosoftIndia.“In 1997, I was introduced to the Internet and Irealised that there was an ocean of information lying there to beexplored,� says this software programer on a singular mission ofempowering the visually challenged in India. This is where Dinesh was introducedto Dipendra Menocha, head of the computer division at NAB, and himself visuallychallenged, and then got involved with the NAB. “During my graduation Iwas introduced to talking computers by Dipendra,� said Dinesh. AsDinesh’s interest in computers grew, he realised the limitations ofvarious software solutions available for the blind. “I realised thatthough technology provided limited computer access to the visually challenged,the vast majority of visually challenged was still deprived of the informationhighway due to cost and language barriers,� explainsDinesh.Incidentally, Dinesh too uses a screen reader whileprograming.“A similar American-made software has beenavailable, but costs about Rs 45,000, and cannot read Hindi. This is where ourHindi screen reader scores, as it will cost merely Rs 2-3,000,� saysVinamra Agarwal, business director of the software company.Vinamrasummed it up saying: “Dinesh’s conviction and singlemindedpersistence is remarkable. It is humbling to see such dedication to acause.�