Computer Coding by Blind People
Screen readers have made the use of computers more accessible to Blind. They are able to use complex computer coding languages, and work as efficiently as a seeing person.
Alok Kaushik is Blind. He is a senior application developer with an e-commerce website in the United Kingdom. He works with a complex software. This is an assistive software called “screen reader”. This software changes written matter into speech. He works just as fast as a person who can see. Pranav Lal is a cybersecurity expert from Delhi working with Vodafone. He too is Blind. He is able to fluently code in computer languages like Python, Java, C and C++.
Arman Ali who is the executive director of the National Center for Promotion of Employment for Disabled People said that no one would’ve thought that the Blind could do coding. However, with such types technology the Blind are being included, and are not restricted to desk jobs anymore. Technologies like JAWS (Job Access with Speech) and NVDA (Non Visual Desktop Access) are two popular technologies. He said that technology in India, is available only to a small percentage of the blind people of India. Efforts need to be made to look at disability of the Blind as a development issue, and not a welfare issue.
Dinesh Kaushal is a 43 year old Non Visual Desktop Access (NVDA) development manager working with a Multinational Company (MNC) in Gurgaon. As a student in a special school, he was told that he couldn't study maths after class 9 because of his disability. However, Kaushal believes that blind students should be encouraged to study maths and English, so that they too could be able to make a career in fields like engineering and finance.
Technology has greatly advanced to make the world accessible to the Blind people but there are some problems. For ex, some coders complain that many websites including popular applications do not work with a screen reader.
