Why is it in News?
→ World Braille Day observed on 4 January highlighted accessibility initiatives.
→ India advanced digital and standardised Braille frameworks.
Important Points:
- Braille is a six-dot tactile reading and writing system.
- Introduced in India in the late 19th century.
- India has 50.32 lakh persons with visual impairment (Census 2011).
- Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016 ensures Braille access.
- Bharati Braille Code 2025 is Unicode-mapped for Indian languages.
- Draft Bharati Braille 2.1 released in 2026 by NIEPVD.
- Sugamya Bharat Abhiyan promotes accessible public infrastructure.
- India is a signatory to UN Convention on Rights of Persons with Disabilities.