For many years, millions of Deaf people in India are yearning for accessibility in News channels. Some sections of Rights of Persons With Disabilities (RPWD) Act 2016 state that Deaf people should be provided Sign Language Interpretation for television programmes. Furthermore, on 11 th September, 2019, the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting had issued to all TV Channels operators a circular on “Accessibility Standards for Persons with Disabilities in Television Programmes” mentioning that it is imperative for TV channels to provide accessibility. Based on these documents, some of the News TV Channels started incorporating in-house ISL interpretation in a few of their News videos. Unfortunately, Deaf viewers were not happy nor satisfied since it did not meet the standard level of accessibility. They felt that these TV Channels need to work closely with Deaf Professionals in order to deliver the best quality of accessibility.

Luckily, there is a positive change this year. News18 India, one of the most popular Hindi News TV channels’ in India, has partnered with ISH News to carry out the Indian Sign Language (ISL) interpretation of News18 India news bulletins and we will be releasing it in accessible format on our YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, Website & JIO STB. News18 India is the leading Hindi news channel of the country and they strongly believe that there is a constant need to innovate and stay relevant in the rapidly changing news environment. The channel intends to capture the viewer’s interest and also ensure impact. The channel strives to create differentiation and relevance for the viewers. With a carefully crafted content strategy and an array of most seasoned anchors, News18 India has always been working towards delivering the best and most diverse content to its viewers. Since we are a team of Deaf Professionals and CODAs who fully understand the needs of the Deaf Community, you all can rest assured that our ISL interpreted videos will be of the best quality and fluency in ISL!