Realising the need for interpreters!

It amazing how many people do not realise the need for interpreters. The people who need interpreters the most have finally got their act together and are moving for interpreters to be empanelled. the Delhi Legal Services Authority.

Its really wonderful news. I am just waiting for the recruitment and empanelling process to be completed and then we are going to roll it out across India through the ASLI platform. The precedent being set by the Delhi High court and the order of the High Court tot he Delhi Legal services will be replicated across India and we will hopefully be able to create a lot of awareness through this.

How to include the Police dept on this is the question on my mind and certainly as the first interface of the judicial system with society we need to find a suitable solution. One wonders if the DLSA can extend its empannelling to include the Police and the same empanelled persons will be eligible to do duty at both places.

In the meantime I am going to be working on finding good contacts within the police force to approach with this idea. Naturally it follows that the same would again be rolled out to the states.

Big plans!

OPEN LETTER TO STANDING COMMITTEE OF PERSONNEL

Greetings from the Association of Sign Language Interpreters!

We are a relatively new organisation working for the promotion of the profession of Sign Language Interpreting and Equal Access for the deaf community of India. Our membership is across the country and the work thought slow thus far has been heartening as many people are coming forward to serve the needs of the deaf people of our country.

The deaf people of India have had no formal accessibility norms until today and it is with regard to this that I am writing to you today.

The 11^th 5 year Plan was a revolutionary document in that, unlike the previous 10 Plans, this one has an entire chapter (attached) devoted to the upliftment of the disabled people of the country. A specific mention was made of many disabilities and particular mention was made with regard to deafness.

A portion of the section reads “The interventions planned shall provide access to information in all its forms. A large number of sign language interpreters need to be developed for hearing impaired people to access health, employment and legal services.” Further “during the Eleventh Plan period a Sign Language Research and Training Centre will be established which will be devoted to the development and promotion of sign language and training of teachers and interpreters”

The deaf community needs these interventions as their basic necessities for a positive dignified life as contributors to society and empowered citizens. There is then a fundamental need to create a new job in the ‘job list’ defining a “Sign Language interpreter” Without this job being in the job list no interpreter will be recruited by the Govt to provide the access needs of the deaf community of India. If there is no career future then no persons will train to become interpreters and the cycle continues.

Sir, as you see we are approaching a crisis. The Finance Minister in his budget speech has already announced the approval of funds for the Sign Language Institute. The institute will not serve its purpose unless there are trainees and no trainees will come if there are no jobs available for them.

Sir, we would like to meet with you on this matter and try to come to an understanding of what can be done. Please do give us an appointment at your convenience where we may discuss this and other matters.

Thanking you,

ASLI ROLLING ALONG!

The ASLI team is now rolling out an evaluation program for the people who are already sign users so they can by pass the tedious process of training in ISL and move directly on to interpreting. The idea is to create a bridge course of 15 day duration to teach specific classes on "interpreting skills". This can be done in each and every nook and cranny of the country and thereby we empower interpreters working for the deaf across the country. The local sign language variation will not be a hindrance and then these local interpreters whoa re working without training or support will be tied in to a national network and recive online training and support from ASLI.

I am rather excited that this way of impacting India is receiving attention finally and the plan that my best friend and I developed 11 years ago is finally off the shelf and in the fray.

Really excited about how this is going to develop. We are getting a team together to develop the course. gonna be good working with linguistic profs and educators and terps all together. wow! also going to put an email group or website group together so we can swop documents and ideas on line.

the vision for indian interpreting!

It sometimes hard for me to grasp that the numbers are so low. And yet the numbers should be so high. given that there are lets say 10 million deaf people in india. lets remove half as being overstated. so 5 million then lets remove 80% as being rural and therefore limited language skills and mostly home sign users. thats 1 million and lets remove 80% as being semi lingual and orally trained and so are unable to speak or to sign. that leaves us 200,000 urban signers. Lets say half of these have not been able to influence any one in their family to sign though they sign themselves. then we have 100,000 deaf people who sign and have siblings who sign. That makes it 100,000 siblings who sign. and taking the last number of 200,000 signers assuming that these many deaf signers get married and have children who sign then we are talking about another 100,000 at least of CODAs. so we should have about 200,000 sign users in the country somewhere.

CAN YOU IMAGINE THAT??? 200,000 INTERPRETERS!!!!

That is what my target for ASLI is. 200,000 members. The number of Indian sign language interpreters whether they are active or not or whether they are formally trained or not, whether they are interested in signing as a profession or not..... they are out there.

All ASLI needs to do is get out there and find them. Just locate them and we are going to be up to our eyebrows in Interpreters and not a moment too soon. There is a whole army of deaf people waiting for services and resources and information and everything.

Can you imagine when we tell the govt they need to have one interpreter per school cuz Sarva Shiksha Abhiyaan, "education for all" cannot function otherwise? Thats 12 lakh Govt schools and about 50 lakh private schools. You are talking some serious numbers at only one per school. if it was two? or three? Its the highest growing profession in the country.

there is a lot to do. that is for sure.

Conference News!

It was a great day in the history of ASLI that we were able to host a national conference with 3 international speakers. and thats not all. The diversity of the speakers as well as the participants was amazing. A linguist, a deaf professor, a rotary volunteer educationist, an interpreter, and a deaf blind person; 3 from abroad came together to make a wonderful conference experience for the 50 odd persons who gathered there.
The attendees had students of ISL, parents, researchers, deaf people, CODAs and professional interpreters as well. what a mix and what a fun two days.

Dr. Madan was the key note presenter and he came up with some really funny gags to keep everyone in splits. The Dupatta interpreter was a particular favorite. ha! He was talking about how indian girls when they interpret they are continuously fidgeting with their clothes and particularly the dupatta. ha! Good one!

An amazing two days. Just the energy around the table and the expectancy and the hope was tangible, almost could touch the excitement in the air. What a cool suggestion came from someone in the audience who is a student of ISL. He said as casually as possible " I was looking in all the bookshops for a sign language book but could not find one."

It is really crazy why nobody has ever mainstreamed the ISL handbook. Simple get a publisher to pick it up and then they publish it and it goes into the regular book network and thats that. so simple! My god!! why didn't anyone think of it before??? or maybe they did and they just did not say anything. Any way its got me thinking!!!

countdown to conference!

WE are all on the edge of our seats and the excitement is running high. all eyes on tomorrow when the national conference of sign language interpreters begins.
Its so encouraging to be receiving confirmations from across the country for the conference and yet its like being on a high-wire walk across the grand canyon. Very very scary.
The stage is set and our speakers are here. The program is finalised. I somehow feel the future of indian interpreting is all going to be there tomorrow. The core team of interpreters who were bold enough to spend their own money and come and participate without knowing very much about us. are we going to be able to fulfill their expectations?? this is in my mind. Are we going to be able to take on the onerous charge of running this organisation effectively.
The need is simply huge. the new signntalk video interpreting relay service is due for launch and the while country is watching. its a really emotional high time. i feel so relieved and at the same time apprehensive. a series of conflicting and confusing emotions as we go in to the conference tomorrow.
Hats off to the team tho. they have been ultimately wonderful. the support of my beloved staff and friends has as always been a bulwark for me in every new venture we take on and i am so thankful for that support.
HERE'S TO TOMORROW!!!!

count down to the conference!

The mood is exciting and the office somewhat turbulent.... Everybody is going for the burn. That is the mood right now in my office and the crackle in the air is the upcoming conference of interpreters. more and more are registering and the event promises to be a humdinger.

I have been meeting with a few terps from across the country recently and everyone really wants to come. some cant of course and that is really too bad. Hope fully the effect of this conference and the advocacy after this conference will help the indian terps to get their long awaited due of respect and recognition for the profession. this will automatically help the profession to grow into a serious career option for the future. The idea of having no remuneration for a job you do is not a very enthusing prospect and so interpreters who are now working are a dedicated lot who really would like to see change.

I hope to give it to them thru a series of changes in policy and procedure and if all goes well, Govt intervention. The powers that be are also aligned for the change and they just don't know it. the 11th Plan clearly mandates the training and development of interpreters. Its just a matter of time before we catch up to them.

Its time to have all deaf people everywhere seeking out and searching out interpreters and friends who know signs and encouraging everyone to really beat the bushes for the people who know how to sign and have them all come and work among deaf persons empowering deaf people to communicate.