Turning eyes and ears towards the specially abled

One common grouse against the police in most places is that they turn a blind eye or a deaf ear to the problems of able-bodied common people unless they know that the complainant knows somebody in their hierarchy or has solid political backing. Proving such people wrong in a way, in Visakhapatnam Police Commissioner Ravi Shankar has come up with a technical solution that is designed to reach out to the specially abled. His initiative ‘Disha-Divyang Suraksha’, a helpline for the visually impaired (+917337324466) and the hearing impaired (+917337434422) launched early this month, enables the beneficiaries to share their concerns by recourse to sign language. Three sign-language professionals will be available to decode their message, upon receipt of which the police personnel of the PS concerned are expected to act. The initiative is being hailed as a marvel in inclusive policing.