THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Karuthalode Keralam, a news programme in sign language to present the highlights of the chief minister’s press briefing on Covid-19 in a week, is likely to be made a daily feature due to its popularity among the hearing impaired community. The briefings in sign language will be screened in a staggered manner after the chief minister’s evening press briefings, said a source close to the development.
The inclusive measure is already popular in other countries. The daily briefings have a sizeable audience and when the state’s disease response won global plaudits, often the comparisons are made with similar briefings in other places. The CM’s address has been compared to that of New York Governor Andrew Cuomo by international media.
“State heads fighting the disease have effectively used sign language interpretation for the benefit of the hearing impaired. We are also starting to take up the issue seriously,” said the source.There are close to three lakh hearing impaired in the state and offering the briefings in sign language give a wider audience outside the state considering the global attention on the state’s pandemic controlling efforts. At present, the programme shows only the highlights. Yet, the episodes are circulated widely among the deaf community and their parents. As many as seven channels, including a general entertainment channel, aired six episodes so far.
“It is a very good initiative and an inclusive measure that could help the hearing impaired in the long run,” said M Moideen, father of a deaf daughter and general secretary of All Kerala Parents’ Association of Hearing Impaired. The video division of the state-run Centre for Development of Imaging Technology has produced the programmes. “The shooting started in a constrained environment during lockdown. We have made videos of 6 to 8 minutes duration keeping in mind its circulation on social media,” said an officer of C-DIT.
“The hearing impaired are enthusiastic to get regular updates on the disease in sign language,” said Prasanth R L, a faculty member at the National Institute of Speech and Hearing. The community has already developed sign language for newer terms such as Covid-19, social distancing, quarantine, etc.