Braille Production Centers in India

Central Braille Press, Dehradun

Braille Production in India

Braille Literacy - For Many it is the Difference Between Employment and Poverty

When you hear about civil rights, equality, nondiscrimination, civil liberties and the like you are probably thinking about race and gender; but does disability come to mind? Especially, when it comes to employment and poverty. Here are some facts to consider when looking at equality and civil rights and liberties regarding people who are blind.

Blindness and Poverty Related Statistics

Braille Literacy Statistics

The American Printing House for the Blind polls each state for data on children between the ages of 4 and 21. Their results are alarming, it is estimated that 60,400 students are attending public schools or public ran programs. Here is a breakdown of the literacy percentages for these children:

Literacy is Crucial for Employment

While the above are mostly based on studies and statistics in the developed countries - unfortunately, no similar study or statistics could be located fr India - it can be strongly concluded that employability is strongly related to Braille literacy. According to a leading startup, the literacy rate among the visually impaired around the world is abysmal - 1% in India, 4% in the UK, and 10% in USA.

Braille Books in India - the Severe Lack thereof

In India, one of the biggest hurdles in the Braille literacy is the easy and cost-effective availability of the Braille Books. Again, no specific statistics is available except gross pointers (The Need for Braille Education in India for the Visually Impaired, 2020). However, several news reports over decades point to a deep shortage:

Hence, India needs to up its Braille production. In view of this the Braille Press Scheme was setup by GoI in 2014.

Braille Press Scheme

In pursuance of the provisions under  Article 41 of the Constitution, the Central Sector Scheme of Support for Establishment/ Modernization/Capacity Augmentation of Braille Presses was started by DEPwD, MoSJE in the year 2014-15 to provide the Braille material and literature to the Persons with Visual Disabilities in India. From the year 2020-21, it has become part of “Scheme for Implementation of Persons’ with Disabilities Act (SIPDA)”.

Under the Braille Press scheme financial assistance has been provided to 27 Braille Presses in various States:

Apart from non recurring grant for setting up of new Braille Presses and Modernization/Capacity augmentation of existing Braille Presses, recurring grant has also been provided to the Braille Presses as per norms @Rs. 1.50/- (later revised to Rs. 2/- per page). Recurring financial assistance has been provided to 16 Braille Presses during operation of the existing scheme over the last seven years. These Braille Presses are supported for recurring grants for printing and providing text books and other course materials to the visually impaired school going children across the country.

The total outlay for the scheme from FY 2016-17 to FY 2020-21 is Rs. 29.31 cr.

A Guide for Braille Presses of India

Accessible Books Consortium (ABC) has published a guide to facilitate Braille publications in India. Besides various technical issues like OCR, formatting, typesetting etc., the guide attempts to promote the production of braille from digital resources within the specific context of India’s copyright legislation. 

In the remaining of the page, we present various Braille Presses in India.

Central Braille Press, National Institute for the Visually Handicapped

116, Rajpur Road, Dehradun 248001

+91 135 744491

nivhddn@nde.vsnl.net.in 

Braille

Value of Production

Value of Sale

Large Print

Value of Production

Value of Sale

Central Braille Press (CBP), Dehradun, India

Situated in one of the pristine parts of Dehradun known as the Rajpur Road, the Central Braille Press is the first press of its kind in India and one of the oldest braille presses in Asia. It was set up in Dehradun, Uttarakhand in 1951 after independence by the Government of India, Ministry of Welfare to make braille literature available to the blind.

This was followed by the setting up of NIEPVD (National Institute for the Empowerment of Persons with Visual Disabilities) in 1967 in an area of about 43 acres on Missouri-Dehradun Highway. 

It is a training center for the blind.

Later, NIEPVD has established

With the combined efforts of these Braille Presses, Braille literature in 14 languages - Assamese, Bangla, English, Garo, Hindi, Kannada, Khasi, Lusai, Nagamese, Punjabi, Sanskrit, Tamil, Telugu and Urdu - is being published

Central Braille Press is the largest producer of Braille text books in India. 

Apart from old printing machines, the Central Braille Press has Heavy Duty High Speed Computerized Braille Embosser like Braillo Braille Embosser and other modern printing machineries. 

Large Print Unit

Institute established country's first large Print Press on 31st Mar 2012. 

This unique Press provides school text books in large print fonts to low vision children in the States of Uttarakhand, Haryana, Union Territory of Chandigarh and Delhi. 

This unit had produced 29,549 Large Print Volumes and served 22,527 individuals and organizations during 2017-18. 

Braille Presses in States of India

Over the years several Braille presses have been setup by the Government and NGOs. An indicative list of those in given below according to different states. 

Assam

Andhra Pradesh

Chhattisgarh

Delhi

All India Confederation of the Blind (AICB) is a body of blind persons working for and with the blind community. It has a powerful Braille Press.

Set up in 1997 with assistance from the Norwegian Association of the Blind and Partially Sighted (NABP), also assisted by the Swiss Umbrella Association of the Blind (SNAB) the Press today is the largest Braille printing house in the country with many notable accomplishments to its credit. It has received Best National Braille Printing Press Award twice (2009 & 2012) from the Union Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment. Its unique features include:

NAB (India) made a humble beginning in 1958 by starting a Braille Press in a small garage at Jogeshwari, Mumbai with machinery received in donation from the American Foundation for Overseas Blind. "Bapuji ki Jhankian" – a life sketch of Mahatma Gandhi – was the first book published by the Press. In 1963, the Government of India designated the Braille Press as the Regional Braille Press for the Western Region. Soon enough, besides textbooks, periodicals and general books, the Braille Press took up printing of dictionaries, biographies/autobiographies of historical figures and religious classics like Ramayan and Bhagwad Gita. 

Sometime in mid-sixties, the Braille Press started its Tactile Graphics Unit with the help of a thermoform duplicator received in gift from the Vocational Rehabilitation Administration, U.S. Govt. Some unique creations of this Unit include: the Braille Atlas, illustrated books on acupressure and human reproduction and a booklet titled “Chitra Manjusha” containing embossed images of flowers, animals, birds, etc., to facilitate concept development in blind learners. In 1984, the Press was relocated at NAB (India) headquarters at Worli Seaface, Mumbai and was renamed NAB Sir Jamshedji Duggan Braille Press, in 1986.

In January 1990 the Shobhi El-Ejel Memorial Braille Library started functioning under the aegis of the Braille Press. Currently, a number of members make use of this library having a collection of over 1,300 books/periodicals. In 1994, a Computerized Braille Production Unit called was initiated by installing a Norwegian computerized Braille embosser acquired with a munificent donation received from the Diwaliben Mohanlal Mehta Charitable Trust, Mumbai and the Indian community in Japan. 

The Braille Press prints textbooks of all subjects – including Math and Science – for English and Marathi medium students of Class I to XII in Maharashtra. The Maharashtra Government has assigned us the task of supplying textbooks for blind students under the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan. In addition, blind students pursuing higher education get many of their books, notes, reference materials etc., converted in Braille, through the Braille Press.

Besides academic books, the Braille Press also publishes general literature – fiction and non-fiction – in five languages – Marathi, Hindi, English, Gujarati and Sanskrit. Important publications include:

NATIONAL ASSOCIATION FOR THE BLIND (INDIA),11/12, Khan Abdul Gaffar Khan Road, Worli Seaface, Mumbai – 400 030 Email: contactus@nabindia.info.

It is a consortium of Not for Profit organizations from India who are involved in production and distribution of books and reading material in accessible formats for persons who cannot read normal print due to visual, cognitive or physical disabilities. The DAISY forum of India envisions a world where people with print disabilities have equal access to information and knowledge without delay or additional expense in their own language. The mission of DAISY Forum of India is to eradicate the “Book famine” for persons with print disabilities. 

DAISY Forum of India 486, Double Storey, New Rajinder Nagar New Delhi – 110060 India. Phone: +91 11 42411015

Gujarat 

Haryana

Karnataka

It started in 2010 is engaged in transcription work of English and Kannada books into Braille for the benefit of visually impaired students. The center has the services of about 10 volunteers who function as readers of the books while 5 visually impaired students, specially trained in transcription, perform the task of drafting the text in Braille. The Center focuses on the transcription of books that are primarily on fiction, knowledge, education, and matters of general interest. All the transcribed books are either maintained in the organization’s library for all to read or donated to various institutions/ school run for the visually impaired. The organization runs a Braille training section where young visually impaired are trained in Braille. The center also focuses on training those who have lost their vision at a later point of time in their lives. 

Door No 02 12th Cross, 8th Main Somanath Nagar, 3rd Stage Dattagalli, Mysore city, Karnataka India Pin: 570033 

It was setup in Central College Campus in Feb. 2012 with the ambition of having the best assistive technologies available in the world today for its visually challenged students with disability such as blindness and low vision studying in its post-graduate departments and affiliated and autonomous colleges. The University intends to reach out to its visually impaired students in order to facilitate their process of pursuing higher education and enter the mainstream of society with self-confidence and dignity.  

The modern printing facility that was recently set up with imported machines from Norway is capable of printing five lakh Braille copies per month

Kerala

Madhya Pradesh

Maharashtra

In view of providing ‘Sanskar Sahitya’ (Literature giving the values in life) SAKSHAM’s Nagpur, Kalyan, Akola (Maharashtra) units are also creating books in Braille Script through computers. The volunteers force mainly comprising of either housewives or retired people who after a brief training of computer orientation now contributing to this service and created around 80 books in short span of three years. The books include 

Samadrishti, Kshamata Vikas Evam Anusandhan Mandal (SAKSHAM), Madhav Netrapedhi, 16, Devadutta Bhavan, Ranapratap Square, Pratap Nagar,NAGPUR (Mah.) 440022 Contact No – 0712-2244918 FAX – 0712-2244918 Email – esaksham@yahoo.com 


Meghalaya


Mizoram 

Odhisha

Punjab 

Braille Production Unit was initiated by installing a High Speed Index 4 Waves Braille Embosser and has been expanded to two big rooms. Today the Press has Three Index Braille Embossers and it has emerged as one of the unique Braille Press in the northern region. Besides text books, story books and other general books are also produced here. The Chandigarh Transport Undertaking (CTU) introduced guide-map and route of their buses for the visually impaired persons in Braille Script which was embossed in our Braille Press. Chandigarh Art Gallery & Museum was also helped by us by embossing the name and description of each sculpture, murals, arts, paintings etc in Braille Script.

Rajasthan 

Tamil Nadu

It is a Spiritual, Social, Charitable and non-profit Registered organization offering its services to the Blind, Disabled and Destitute Men, Women and Children in India in meeting their Spiritual, Social, Educational and Rehabilitation needs. 

CFBI Braille Press, Pallavaram Chennai 600 043: Since the project embosses literature in Braille and distributes to the visually handicapped, all the beneficiaries covered by the project are visually handicapped. 

It has established a sophisticated Regional Braille Press in the year 2009 at its premises. The Braille Press is equipped with computer assisted technology and modern imported machineries. Four High speed Computerized Braille Embossers in two models Braillo 440SW and Braillo 650SW have been installed in the Press and are functioning with the printing capacity of 5 Lakhs Braille pages in a month approximately. School text books are printed for distribution to children with visual impairment as per orders received from the respective State Governments in the Southern Region. 

They specialize in creating customized Braille Maps and Braille signs as to optimize mobility solutions in a building or a public place. We design tactile floor plans and customized tactile solutions. Email: reachanuprayaas@anuprayaas.org 


Tripura

Uttar Pradesh


Uttarakhand

West Bengal 

The printing press is housed within the NATMO campus in Salt Lake in the city. The Kolkata-headquartered organization under Department of Science & Technology has designed a comprehensive Braille atlas for nearly 50 lakh blind people in the country.