Amrita Hospital, Kochi, inaugurated its Amrita AI-Powered Technology for the Blind by celebrating the 216th birth anniversary of Louis Braille. The renowned French educator is the inventor of a reading and writing system for visually impaired people.
Braille himself was blinded at the age of three in an accident that occurred while playing with tools in his father’s harness shop. Named after him, he created braille as a system of printing with raised round marks that blind people can read by touching them.
Today, Amrita is focusing on a new era that uses AI for assistive technologies. The inauguration included distribution of Smart Vision Glasses to 40 visually impaired people. They were given a hands-on training session about how to use the spectacles.
Smart Vision Glasses use algorithms to identify and classify objects in the user’s environment, providing verbal descriptions or alerts. The technology includes reading printed and handwritten text and then converting it into audio, sensors to help people navigate their surroundings, and facial recognition.
Dr Gopal S Pillai, Head of the Ophthalmology Department at Amrita Hospital, Kochi, shared that while advanced technologies like retinal microchips, stem cells, and gene therapy are available for the blind, their high costs make them inaccessible to the common man. Amrita’s indigenous research aims to bridge the gap between quality and technology, offering affordable solutions.
Dr. Prema Nedungadi, Associate Dean of the School of Computing, Amritapuri, and Director of Amrita CREATE, introduced AI-Assisted Technology for the Blind, emphasising the transformative impact of cutting-edge innovation.
The inauguration of Amrita AI-Powered Technology for the Blind took place in collaboration with the National Federation of the Blind, Kerala; Sakshmana, Kerala, a national organisation for people with disabilities; and BPCL, a major Indian public sector oil and gas company.
The ceremonial lighting of the lamp was graced by Swami Amritaswarupananda Puri, Vice Chairman of Mata Amritanandamayi Math and President of Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham, alongside other dignitaries.
Hon’ble Justice (Rtd) Gopinathan PS inaugurated the function, and other distinguished guests included Sri CC Kasimany, General Secretary of the National Federation of the Blind, Kerala; Sri Satheeshkumar, Elanji, President of NFB Kerala; Sri TS Radhakrishna Jee, music composer; representatives from BPCL; and Dr Anil Radhakrishnan, Consultant Cornea and Refractive Surgery, Amrita Hospital, Kochi.
The day also featured a Braille Reading Competition in English and Malayalam, which highlighted the capabilities and talents of the visually impaired people who took part.
As well, a Showcase of Accessible Devices was part of a Digital Literacy Awareness Workshop with many technologies that demonstrated advancements for the blind. The session was conducted by RCGF Project Surya in collaboration with Enable India.
