On the eve of Independence Day, Prabhu to award DCF CEO

On the eve of Independence Day Priti Shah Soni of Deaf Can Foundation (DCF)-Bhopal would be given sixth NCPEDP MPHASIS Universal Design Awards by Railway Minister-Suresh Prabhu in New Delhi .The first customer care personnel on a wheelchair in the aviation industry; a young girl from Assam developing a crutch with shock absorbers triggered by her friend’s struggle; or an advocate for deaf rights from Bhopal who religiously translates news into Sign language. Priti Shah Soni, CEO-DCF is working to bridge this gap. In order to ensure that young people from the deaf community are kept abreast of latest developments, Priti converts educational curriculum, latest news and general awareness information into videos using Sign language and captioning 

services which are then distributed widely.

DCF imparts free education to deaf students using Sign language as a medium of education. They provide Sign language interpretation services to facilitate access between the deaf community and the outside world. Besides being an ardent advocate for Sign language and accessible information for the deaf, Priti also works to help young deaf people develop English speaking skills, communication skills, computer skills, provides training in leadership and personality development etc and also matrimonial services.

These Awards aim to popularise the concept of Universal Design-a design that is usable to the greatest extent possible by everyone, regardless of age, ability, or situation should be therefore, inherent to the idea of access. Accessibility-be it to physical environment, information or services, forms the very basis of freedom for the estimated 70-100 million people with disabilities in the country and therefore these Awards are given away on the eve of India’s Independence Day.

The Awards are given away in three categories: Persons with disabilities; working professionals; and companies and organisations. Awardees among persons with disabilities are Abha Khetarpal (Delhi), Priti Shah Soni (Bhopal), Sandeep Kumar (Delhi) while Simon George (Kochi) won a special mention. A jury of eminent persons representing various areas of expertise selected the Awardees.