BJP MP suggests including sign language interpreter for Sansad TV during upcoming Parliament session

New Delhi [India], November 12 : Bharatiya Janta Party (BJP) Rajya Sabha MP from Jharkhand Mahesh Poddar on Friday wrote a letter to the Chairman of Rajya Sabha Venkaiah Naidu and suggested the inclusion of a sign language interpreter in Sansad TV for the upcoming Winter session of Parliament and thereafter.
Poddar, in the letter, said, "I...suggest including a sign language interpreter in Sansad TV for the upcoming Winter Session of the Parliament and thereafter."
Sansad TV was launched in September 2021 as the "new voice of the Parliament". The Government, under the leadership of Narendra Modi had given the clarion call of 'Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas' as an ideal to pursue.
"...Sansad TV was recently conceived as a crucial medium of political literacy in the country by amalgamating the previous two channels. Around 19 per cent of the disabled in India suffer from hearing disabilities, therefore, it would go a long way if Sansad TV includes a sign language interpreter for its shows and live telecast, particularly when we are looking ahead to a Winter Session of the Parliament in some weeks," his letter read.
Poddar, in his letter, cited the example of Parliament of the United Kingdom (UK) and said that even internationally, a special show for the hearing impaired is held to connect them with Parliamentary developments.
"Our Parliament has always been a space for quality debates and discussions since pre-independence on key issues and it is imperative at our end to make sure every section of the society can engage with it equally and meaningfully," Poddar said while hoping that the suggestion is deliberated upon.