Mata Bhagwanti Chadha Niketan Launches ‘Vaakya’ Disabled Friendly App

Mata Bhagwanti Chadha Niketan, one of the largest schools in India for differently-abled, on its 18th annual day undertakes two noble and path breaking initiatives with the launch of Vaakya, a picture based app for speech impaired; and an e-commerce portal that sells hand-made products made by special children of MBCN under the Swayam programme.

Mata Bhagwanti Chadha Niketan works under the aegis of The Ponty Chadha Foundation that works towards the social and economic development of the society.

Mobile based application, VAAKYA, is immensely helpful for persons who are speech impaired, affected by autism, cerebral palsy and various other mental and physical conditions. It is an augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) tool and can also be used during rehabilitation. Some of its key differentiators are:

• No language barrier: The app creates a combination of custom images and phrases, which can be related to an individual user in order to effectively communicate.
• Diverse and Flexible: It does not rely on internet connectivity and utilizes the phone's own memory only.
• Easy Usage: Multiple User Accounts can be created by adding multiple students/patients to the application with unique actions and speech specific to individual user. The speech associated with actions can be recorded and played back in any language providing greater flexibility.
• It is available on Google Play Store for free of cost from Feb 16^th

Speaking about these initiatives, Ms. Vandana Sharma, Director, Mata Bhagwanti Chadha Niketan said, “MBCN has been working towards empowering children with special needs for 18 years now.  With Vaakya, our mission is to give the specially-abled a tool to communicate efficiently and make them independent and self-reliant.”

The school has also integrated an e-commerce portal with its website (www.mbcnschool.org). This portal allows customers to buy hand-made products made by the special children of the school under the vocational training programme ‘Swayam’.   The handmade products are wedding gifts, packaging items, office stationery, paper bags and other gift products which from now will be available online for sale.  Product details like price, size and other specifications have been mentioned along with customers review. The prospective buyers can log on to the school’s website and buy the products using the simple user interface.

“The vocational training programme ‘Swayam’ provides a sense of self-worth and economic independence. The students get stipend for the hours they spend on their skill as an encouragement for their hard work and give them a sense of economic independence. These initiatives would give an impetus to our on-going efforts in bringing vital changes to the lives of hundreds of children,” she added.