HELEN KELLER- an international celebrity who has shown the
light of the day to disabled and a prodigy is to be remembered on this ‘WORLD
DISABLED DAY’. Helen Keller would not have been known to the world had she not
lost both her sight and hearing at nineteen months of age due to scarlet fever.
“The best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even
touched. They must be felt with the heart”; this is what she has proved to the
universe by her life. She practiced and wrote,” Although the world is full of
suffering, it is full also of the overcoming of it”. Yes! Helen Keller overcame
disabilities and worked to help others who were blind and deaf.she has shown
millions of people that disability need not be the end of the world.
Helen Keller was born on June27, 10 in
Tuscumbia, Alabama... Through Alexander Graham Bell, inventor of the telephone
and a teacher for the deaf a young teacher, Annie Sullivan of Perkins Institute
for the Blind in Boston was her mentor. Sullivan had herself been blind for a
time, only to regain partial sight through surgery. Using
an alphabet of hand shapes which can be spelled into another person's hand,
Sullivan followed Keller everywhere. From this point on, Keller was ravenous
for knowledge... Keller quickly learnt to read Braille and a specialized
typewriter allowed Keller to communicate in writing.
On 28 June 1904 Helen graduated from Radcliffe College, becoming the first
deaf blind person to earn a Bachelor of Arts degree. In recognition of her wide knowledge and many scholarly
achievements, she received honorary doctoral degrees from Temple University and
Harvard University and from the Universities of Glasgow, Scotland; Berlin,
Germany; Delhi, India; and Witwatersrand in Johannesburg, South Africa. She was
also an Honorary Fellow of the Educational Institute of Scotland.
The Hindi movie Black
released in 2005 was largely based on Keller's story, from her childhood to her
graduation. Keller has traveled wide with very good public speaking and has
contacted many famous persons including John.F.Kennedy., Keller championed the cause
of veterans who had been blinded in battle during World war II.Helen wrote a
number of very well-received books, including
·
The Story of My life
·
Optimism
·
The World I Live In
·
The Song of the Stone Wall
·
Out of the Dark
·
My Religion
·
Midstream:My Later Life
·
Teacher
On June 1, 1968, Helen Keller
breathed her last at the age of 87.Her few quotations are "Once I knew only darkness and stillness. . . . My life was
without past or future. But a little
word from the fingers of another fell into my hand that clutched and my heart
leaped to the rapture of living”
LIBRARY FOR THE BLIND-HELEN KELLER KNOWLEDGE CENTRE
Skills
of persons with disabilities can be developed only when the society at large
looks at the abilities in them. Library servives play an important role in
achievement of literacy of disabled persons. . .
There is an urgent need for
physically challenged also to have the equal access to the knowledge centre as
that of normal persons. One of the ways and means of bridging the gap of
disability and ability is by ensuring an effective library service for the
physically challenged. Gone are the days where Library is said to be place
where there are collection of books.
Now the age is DIGITAL LIBRARY. There are
so many special libraries have come into existence. Why not state libraries
come forward to establish a dedicated section of Library exclusively for
physically challenged? Already there is a plan to have one such section of
library in the District Central Library, Karur. No wonder that district has
bagged an award this year as the best district that has worked for the uplift
of disabled persons.
In Jawaharlal Nehru University, Delhi,
there is a spacious section in the first floor exclusively for the blind
students and research scholars. It is named as ‘HELEN KELLER LIBRARY’. There
cannot be a fitting name for that.
Digital Braille library is functioning with twenty computer
terminals.Talkingbooks are available. Visually challenged persons do not feel
so there. Delhi University Library has a huge collection of study material.
Few more selective Libraries in India do
have a section for blind. But it should become common phenomena in all public
libraries. A small table is given below as the ready reckon
The Library for the blind should have automated doors for
the entry, wheel chair accessible study centers, Head sets with adaptive
technology, Kuizweil 3000 software(a text to speed reading machine with synthesized
speech output), JAWS(Job Access With Speech), virtual section, text type
telephone, biblotherapy(for mentally retarded),Braille printers, Braille
embosser and tape duplicators,visualtek closed circuit TVs for magnifying
regular text(for low vision persons), large print type writers, special; track
tape recorders, computers that have adaptable equipments such as voice eyes,
computer workstations with a large trackball mouse and above all affectionate
and understandable guides.
Unique activities of Karur central library and Dr.S. Raghavan's contribution to the library
|
Let authorities in principle take
decision to establish knowledge centers so as to make the disabled feel they
are no way different from others..!!!
UNIQUE ACTIVITIES OF KARUR
CENTRAL LIBRARY AND Dr.S.
RAGHAVAN'S CONTRIBUTION TO THE LIBRARY IN DECCAN CHRONICLE
Myself Dr.S.Raghavan was requested by the Ex Director of NIT Trichy Dr.P.SUBRAMANIAM to take over the LIBRARAY as OVERALL COORDINATOR as instructed by the Dr.ANAND COMMITTEE (appoint a person who will improve the library in war footing basis)
Since that day, I have taken interest in LIBRARIES. And I became member in ILA, IELTS etc. I was Instrumental in the building of the NEW MULTI STORIED building of the present LIBRARY of NIT, Trichy.
Since that day, I have taken interest in LIBRARIES. And I became member in ILA, IELTS etc. I was Instrumental in the building of the NEW MULTI STORIED building of the present LIBRARY of NIT, Trichy.
In Deccan Chronicle,I brought the UNIQUE ACTIVITIES OF KARUR CENTRAL LIBRARY in which I am one of the patrons.
Unique activities of Karur central library and Dr.S. Raghavan's contribution to the library in Deccan Chronicle |
Dr S RAGHAVAN
SENIOR MOST PROFESSOR,
MICROWAVE ENGINEERING GROUP,
EX. OVERALL COORDINATOR OF NIT-TRICHY LIBRARY
N I T TRICHY
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