DEPwD’s tableau on Indian sign language was a special attraction at the 72nd Republic Day Parade
The Tableau of Indian Sign Language Research and Training Centre (ISLRTC), Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities, Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment showcased the theme - Bhartiya Sanketik Bhasha: Ek Rashtra, Ek Sanketik Bhasha at the 72nd Republic Day parade. It highlighted the unifying nature of Indian sign language (ISL) in a nation, where there is a great diversity in spoken languages. The aim was to raise awareness and highlight the commitment of the government towards creating a barrier-free environment for people with hearing disabilities.
There were 12 artists on the Tableau, who performed the theme song in Indian sign language. With a view to enhance accessibility for the hearing impaired, a need was felt to set up an institute focusing on the development and furtherance of Indian sign language. That is why Indian Sign Language Research and Training Centre (ISLRTC) was set up on September 28 2015, as an autonomous body under the Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities (Divyangjan), Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment.
ISLRTC conducts courses for developing Indian sign language (ISL) interpreters and teachers and provides interpretation services to organisations for various programmes and events. It has developed a dictionary of ISL containing 6,000 academic, medical, legal and agricultural terms in addition to terms of everyday use. The centre also provides Short Term Training Programmes on basic ISL communication skills. To make educational materials accessible for children with hearing disabilities, ISLRTC has signed an MoU with National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT). As part of this MoU, educational print materials such as school text books of Classes I to XII of all subjects (both Hindi and English medium) are being converted into ISL.