Thanks to Amar for his judicious comments.
With best regards,
Amiyo Biswas
Cell: 9433464329 / 6290527506
----- Original Message -----
From: "Ramya Venkitesh" <ra...@barrierbreak.com>
To: <accessindia@accessindia.org.in>
Sent: Wednesday, May 15, 2019 4:23 PM
Subject: [AI] Reserve Bank of India suggests app to help visually impaired
people identify rupee notes
Source: Newz Hook <https://newzhook.com/story/22245>
The visually impaired community in India is not able to access the new
currency notes as they are inaccessible. This makes cash transactions
challenging for around 80 lakh visually impaired people in the country.
The lack of identifiable features such as the dimensions and tactile
marks,
that can be felt and sensed by blind people through touch have made the
new
notes a huge headache.
The Reserve Bank of India says it is not feasible to completely remove the
new notes from circulation, and has proposed to use technology to fix the
problem. It has come forward with the idea of a mobile phone application
that can be used to identify rupee notes.
While the move to find a solution, which comes after sustained pressure
from
disability rights groups, has been appreciated, technology may not offer
the
way forward says Mumbai-based lawyer Amar Jain.
I will say that it's one of the ways to solve the problem but it does not
address the underlying problem of the physical currency being inaccessible
by itself. I do understand the challenge of replacing a large volume of
currency notes printed and there is cost involved in everything but at the
same time we should take lessons from this and should ensure that at least
the future designs of currency notes are accessible for blind people. I
don't think to fix something like this with technology is a holistic
approach. - Amar Jain, Lawyer
Technology companies interested in developing an app for currency
identification have been asked to submit bids to the Reserve Bank of
India.
The RBI has sent out a proposal in this regard that outlines the
requirements from the app. The app needs to have features that are
accessible and can be used easily by the blind people. Some of the
features
are:
* The app should be able to identify banknotes of Mahatma Gandhi
Series and Mahatma Gandhi New series by capturing the image of the notes
placed in front of mobile camera or scrolled across it.
* Should be able to identify the note within a duration of two seconds
or less.
* Work in offline mode without Internet connection.
* Interface should be available with multi-lingual support or at least
Hindi and English.
* Provide audio notifications.
* Users should be able to find the app in all the app stores using the
voice option.
While the app may help some, what about those who do not have access to
this
technology? asks Vishal Kumar Jain.
Jain, who is a member of BGFI-Blind Graduates' Forum of India says, most
people with visual disabilities in India do not have access to smartphones
and have limited opportunities to learn using screen reading technology to
operate a phone. "Also, the RBI doesn't seem to have conducted any
structured user needs study before specifying the requirements in the
tender", adds Jain. "Imagine the practicality of holding a white cane in
one
hand in a crowded noisy street, while using the other hand to hold the
phone
and point the camera accurately towards currency, without being able to
see".
A better approach he says would be to have a small wearable device.
The Central Bank of India and the Centre will need to step up and make
sure
that such missteps do not occur again in the future and that whenever
currency is designed, it is done with thorough consideration. This is true
not just for currency but digital transactions, banks and ATMs too.
Thanks & Regards
Ramya Venkitesh |Head New Initiatives
Newz Hook <http://www.newzhook.com/>
Newz Hook is now on WhatsApp <https://newzhook.com/whatsapp>
Celebrating Global accessibility Awareness day- May 16 2019
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Celebrating Global accessibility Awareness day- May 16 2019
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Disclaimer:
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person sending the mail and AI in no way relates itself to its veracity;
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