Helen Keller Awards 2017
The winners will be felicitated during a ceremony in New Delhi on December 2 – the eve of World Disability Day
Now in its eighteenth year, the Helen Keller Awards have not only led to a recognition of the social responsibility held by corporates, NGOs and individuals but have also emerged as a way to map the progress made each year towards greater empowerment of India’s millions of disabled.
The National Centre for Promotion of Employment for Disabled People (NCPEDP) started the Helen Keller Awards in 1999 to discourse on equal opportunities for people who are differently-able in the area of employment. The association also aimed at recognising the work done by corporates and individuals towards promoting employment opportunities for people with disabilities in India.
Over the years, these awards have become one of the most prestigious Indian benchmarks for honouring people and organisations, working towards promoting employment opportunities for the disabled
This year, under three different categories, ten awards have been announced, which will be felicitated in a simple ceremony in New Delhi on December 2 – the eve of World Disability Day.
Role model disabled persons:
The category includes disabled persons from within the disability sector and outside who have been active as ambassadors of the cause of employment for disabled people and are a positive role model for others. Dr Charudatta Jadhav – Head Accessibility COE, Tata Consultancy Services Limited; Devanshi Joshi – Store Assistant, Gram Bharat; Dr Nirmita Narasimhan – Policy Director, Centre for Internet and Society; and Pradip Sinha – Executive, Issue Retrieval Centre in IT Asset Management, Dell – EMC, have been awarded under the category this year.
Role model supporters of increased employment opportunities for disabled people:
SV Krishnan – CEO, Dialogue in the Dark – ACE Take 1; and Swaminathan Subramanian – Manager, Payments and Operations, ANZ Bengaluru Service Centre, are the two individuals who have been recognised for their contributions towards promoting employment opportunities for disabled people over an extended period of time.
Role model companies/NGOs/institutions:
Amongst the many organisations from the disability sector and outside who have shown their commitment towards promoting equal employment opportunities for people with disabilities, Barrier Break Solutions Private Limited, Hatti Food and Beverages Private Limited, The Lemon Tree Hotel Company, and Vindhya e-Infomedia Private Limited, will be felicitated for their contributions this year.
While many are ignorant about the differently-abled, there are others who haven’t turned a blind eye towards them and believed in the ability of the disabled. More and more organisations in India are taking up the Corporate Social Responsibilities (CSR) seriously and are contributing towards the upliftment of differently-abled people.
With the increasing population of differently-abled in India, the need for educational and employment resources is now apparently more than ever. However, with a majority of the differently-abled population living in rural areas, the issue of accessibility is not getting the attention it needs.
But with the rise in initiatives for the differently-abled, things are changing for better, gradually.
