“It is estimated that over a billion people are impacted worldwide with disability out of which only 1 out of 10 can access the assistive technology due to lack of awareness and high cost”. This is the notion on which the Government of Telangana through which Telangana State Innovation Cell (TSIC) is organizing the first-ever state-led Assistive Technology Summit 2020 under the theme “Assistive Technology (AT) for All – making affordable Assistive Technology accessible to everyone”.
The summit scheduled on December 3, 2020, which marks the International Day for Disabled Persons aims to lay foundations of a robust AT-Ecosystem in the state.
The summit will be bringing together key players across the nation in the AT space, such as Researchers, Innovators, Investors, Social Enterprises, NGOs, Expert users, and Government organizations from all over the country, to discuss building affordable solutions, easing the access to solutions for PwDs, and collaborations to sustain the ecosystem further. The stakeholders part of the summit are— T-Works, LVPEI Center for Innovation, Artilab Foundation, AssisTech Foundation, Social Alpha, BVRIT Hyderabad College of Engineering, Youth4Jobs, Unmukt-The Senior Hub.
The summit will be spread out with features— AT Exhibition Launch, Keynote sessions, Success Stories, and Panel Discussions to build more solutions in the space of AT.
One of the major features of the summit will be the launch of the AT Exhibition that will see innovators from school to college-level and entrepreneurs across India with a major focus on Telangana, who have devised affordable solutions for PwDs. The exhibition will mark the intersections between Government and Innovators leading to building an ecosystem.
Principal Secretary of IT & IC Mr. Jayesh Ranjan during the poster launch of the summit, said, “Persons with disabilities (PwDs) and their attendants suffer a lot in transacting basic issues as a part of their day to day living. In the last few decades, there has been a substantial advancement in science, technology, and knowledge regarding aids and appliances for the PwDs. Telangana, a state known for nurturing and adopting innovative ideas, is attempting to motivate innovators and makers to design more such products and solutions for the benefit of PwDs. We hope to showcase the best of the lot in the Assistive Technology Summit.”
Chief Innovation Officer of TSIC, Mr. Ravi Narayan said that the state has been a pioneer in building ecosystems and December 3 will multiply the streak with AT Summit. He adds, “This Assistive Technology Summit by TSIC is the largest Summit in AT Space where the brightest of the minds are coming together from all over India to build a unique Assistive Technology focused ecosystem in Telangana. We believe all the stakeholders in the space such as NGOs, academia, research organizations, Investors, Innovators, and the Government can add value to each other’s work through cross-sectoral collaborations through mechanisms such as Exhibition, Panels, and Success stories.”
The Government of Telangana invites everyone to be part of building this ecosystem on December 3. To apply for the summit, one can visitఛ www.teamtsic.org/assistive-technology-summit.