Starting Over

Forty-year-old Gangadharappa lives in Chikkaballapur district of Karnataka. He worked as an Assistant Manager in a garment factory for fifteen years before a road accident in 2015 resulted in his vision loss.  This life-changing event left him unemployed and devastated. He struggled to come to terms with his loss of sight and remained confined at home for the next three years.

While jobless, he leaned on his savings to provide for his family. When the savings exhausted, Gangadharappa was anxious and on the lookout for any opportunity that would enable him to support his wife and two young children. Right then, he got to know about Eyeway through Namma Vaani -an audio service run for disabled people in Karnataka. Immediately, he contacted the Eyeway Helpdesk for support.

The Eyeway Helpdesk counsellor in Bangalore sensed his desperation to rehabilitate. During the next set of calls, Gangadharappa was informed on various possibilities of living a complete life with blindness. He was also encouraged to undergo mobility training. Basis his requirement, he was apprised on various loan schemes that he could avail from the Disability Welfare Department to set up a small business of his own.

Acting on the advice, he at once applied for a subsidized loan under Aadhar loan scheme and 5% reserved funds for Persons with Disability in 2018.

After a two-year-long wait and regular follow-up with the District Welfare Office, Gangadharappa was granted the loan amount and an android phone. The Eyeway counsellor then trained him on using the mobile phone with talkback feature and other assistive touch apps for android.

Gangadharappa’s determination and Eyeway’s support has resulted in a flourishing grocery shop and an independent life for him. His greatest satisfaction is that he can now provide for his family like earlier times.