GOLDEN JUBILEE CELEBRATION OF ORISSA ASSOCIATION FOR THE BLIND HELD WITH GREAT JOY & SYMPHONY
Bhubaneswar (30/04/2024): The Orissa Association for the Blind (OAB) marked its golden jubilee with grandeur.
The festivities commenced at the Bhabagrahi Model School, which has been a beacon of hope for nearly 85 visually impaired individuals.
The jubilee saw the inauguration of vocational and computer courses, empowering the visually impaired with essential skills. Participants from across Odisha showcased their talents in various competitions, including debates, song, toy making, Braille reading and writing.
The event was graced by esteemed guests including Jaysree Mohanty, the first lady DG of Rotary 3262, who announced a generous package for OAB. DGN Rtn Jagyansis, the Guest of Honour, pledged support during his tenure. Suraj K Raj, Chairman of Raj Group of Industries, pledged assistance from the IT sector to nurture the talented visually impaired students.
The other Guests of Honour are Manish Pande, CSR Lead for Odisha State, Infosys Foundation, Mihir Mohanty, Regional Director DHWANI Foundation, President Sannyas Behere led the proceedings, while Secretary Sarat Das expressed gratitude.
Major Dr.Kalpena Das joined the event as the chief speaker.
She highlighted that emphasis is required for collective effort to realize OAB's vision of education for all and robust capacity building.
Together, they affirmed their commitment to empowering the visually impaired community and their proper mainstreaming in the society. The founder members were also present and facilitated on the ceremonious occasion and shared their collective vision for building strength of the association.
On this special occasion, Bhima Bhoi Award of Excellence was conferred to Shri Gyana Ranjan Mohanty, retired OES and former Secretary CHSE Odisha for his immense contribution for the cause of blind welfare as a voluntary reader and scribe from beginning of his student career.
A voters' guide was released by Sightsavers India and distributed among visually impaired persons to educated them about various issues regarding election accessibility. The holy book Bruhat Tapoi/Khudirkuni Osha was unveiled and dedicated to the visually impaired community. Prices were distributed to the winners of different state level competitions organized by VIEWS and WE4YOU In collaboration with OAB. An assistive technology exibition and a dental checkup were alho organized by WE4YOU for health and wellbeing of visual impaired persons.
Self-employment kits were distributed by OAB to unemployed visually impaired youth in pursuit of their self-employment .
