This Site Is under construction.

Go to Blogger edit html and find these sentences.Now replace these sentences with your own descriptions.

This is default featured slide 2 title

Go to Blogger edit html and find these sentences.Now replace these sentences with your own descriptions.

This is default featured slide 3 title

Go to Blogger edit html and find these sentences.Now replace these sentences with your own descriptions.

This is default featured slide 4 title

Go to Blogger edit html and find these sentences.Now replace these sentences with your own descriptions.

This is default featured slide 5 title

Go to Blogger edit html and find these sentences.Now replace these sentences with your own descriptions.

Monday 28 November 2011

Interview: Celebrating diversity. Dawn News

(I personally APOLOGIES to Visually Impaired Persons for miscommunication of word "Introduced Web Radio in Pakistan".. I personally say we just initiated Radio Vision Pakistan, in Support of Visually Impaired Persons. (Rashid Mehmood Khan)).

Mr.Rashid Mehmood Khan, The C.E.O of  the ‘Visionary Foundation Pakistan (VF.PAK)’, is a young social worker and entrepreneur. He is working for people with disabilities and has initiated the ‘Braille books project’ for visually impaired students.

Following are the excerpts from the interview:

1:You started social endeavours at a very young age. What attracted you to this field?

I was part of the oblivious youth until two years back, when I realised that our destiny lies in the hands of young people and decided to be the initiator of a positive change in the community. I always knew that small gestures bring immense changes; therefore I wanted to make a small effort that will bring an enormous change in my country.

2:How was Visionary Foundation Pakistan (VF) formed? What are its activities?

I didn’t plan to form the organisation, it just happened. We used to visit the government hospitals, orphanages and Edhi Centres. Once we visited the head office of the Pakistan Association of Blind House (PAB) in Karachi and met with some very energetic and self-motivated visually challenged  people. They didn’t have any Brailled books to read from and they had to engage a paid writer to help them take examinations. We decided to help them and requested the PAB House to help us learn Braille. We’ve transcribed three course books into Braille and the fourth one is in the pipeline.

We’ve also formed a ‘Writers bank’ where our volunteers help the blind write their exam. So far, we’ve provided six writers to them. I wanted to help the disabled people and formed an organisation which works for their empowerment and looks into their problems, education, health, capacity building, rights and employment opportunities.

Our organisation has commenced various projects. Some of them are: Braille syllabus books, working on the fourth Braille Book, audio Cd's, Radio Vision Pakistan (Online Radio Project) and Vision Mother & child Welfare Health Care Center  

3:What does the success of VF Pakistan mean to you?

It means I’ve made a successful attempt to bring a positive change in my society. I’ve put all my efforts in this organisation and have thought of every possible way I could help the blind. My organisation may not be very established like any of the Edhi Centres, or popular like Shaukat Khanam Hospital, but at least I’ve made a humble attempt to help mankind and I’m pleased with it.

 4:How empowered are the disabled people in the country?

I’m afraid, not much! They are neglected in every field. The government has reserved two per cent quota for them but it isn’t implemented. Besides, jobs opportunities are very limited for them.

To encounter this challenge, we’re raising awareness that all buildings, shopping malls, universities, schools, parks, railway stations, hospitals and even homes should be disabled friendly. We shouldn’t segregate and make fun of those who are deprived, rather we must accept them—after all this is called ‘celebrating diversity’.

5:What should be our youth’s contribution in the community’s development?

Only the youth can save the state. It’s high time that young people wake from their deep slumber and smell the coffee. They should realise the power of community work and start participating in social projects as much as they can.

6:What are your future plans?
I am planning to open a Vision Academy at suberb area of  Surjani Town, Karachi. & Conduct a 1st Pakistan Blind Youth Conference as well.

Sunday 20 November 2011

The vision to see the needs of the blind


KARACHI: “Why do people want to help us in minor tasks and not allow us to do them on our own,” says Ali Tareen, a first year student at Ida Rieu, a school for the deaf and blind.


Undue sympathy is not what people with visual impairments are looking for, Tareen clarifies, and complains of marginalisation. However, there are those whose assistance is welcomed by people living with blindness. One such organisation is the Visionary Foundation of Pakistan, a group of almost 25 people who got their inspiration from a youth workshop in 2009 to work for the blind in Karachi.
In a short span, the Foundation has already achieved many milestones for the visually impaired while it looks to scale greater heights. For instance, the foundation aims to translate all the books of the Sindh Textbook Board into Braille. “We could have done that manually but it is almost an impossible task to transcribe hundreds of books for candidates appearing every year,” said Rashid, one of their members. He said that they are trying to buy Braille printers with computer programmes that can translate into Braille.
One such printer costs about Rs. 0.45 million. While data is not maintained by the government on the population of people with disabilities in Pakistan, the last figures released by the World Health Organisation and Pakistan Ministry of Health in 2006 show that there are almost 1.49 to 1.54 million blind people in the country.

Other tasks the group has undertaken are spreading awareness about the way people with visual impairments are treated and their rights. “We found that a major problem blind people faced was that public transport drivers don’t stop for them as they take longer to get on and off the bus,” said Rashid.
“We coordinated with the City District Government Karachi and trained 50 drivers of the Green Buses to cater to people with disabilities,” he said. “The ultimate result was that the drivers became more patient reserved seats for them in the front row.” Another problem that the blind face is a shortage of people to write exams for them as there are no Braille papers or examination systems in Karachi. “As soon as the date sheet for board exams comes out we have to worry about appropriate writers who are one year younger than us academically according to the Board rules,” said Tareen. “People have now made this a business and charge us between Rs2,000 to Rs8,000 for a year’s papers,” he said.

To address this particular problem, the Visionary Foundation arranged four writers who will be assisting this year’s 50 registered blind students for class nine examinations. The foundation has since reached out to motivational speakers, doctors, government organisations and the British Council to assist in their mission.
But so far almost all of the efforts have been funded by the members of the group, said Rashid. Mohammad Hussain, the National Coordinator of the Pakistan Association of Blind said that all associations serving the visually impaired have offices in cities and in busy areas. He also pointed out that the construction done in the city in the last mayor’s regime paid no attention to the needs of special people. “So what if we are blind, aren’t we part of society?” he questions.