'Govt websites inaccessible to visually impaired'

Even after Prime Minister’s orders and clear guidance by National Informatics Centre (NIC), a number of websites hosted by government departments remain inaccessible to people with disability, said the National Centre for Promotion of Employment for Disabled People (NCPEDP).

It conducted an accessibility audit with BarrierBreaks Technologies that reveals none of government sites – providing essential services and information to the public – can be accessed by the blind, using accessible technology such as the screen readers.

Facilitation

As per Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) issued by World Wide Web Consortium (W3C), websites are mandated to use different kinds of technology to help people with disability to access the computers.
The Web Content Accessibility Guidelinesrecommends several features such as ‘skip to the main content’, ‘heading level’ and others to ensure accessibility.

Without the accessibility features, people with disability will not be able to understand the content.
Not upto standards.

"It is sad that out of nearly 7,000 government websites, even the few that claim accessibility, do not meet international standards,” said Shilpi Kapoor, Managing Director of Mumbai-based BarrierBreaks Technologies.
DH News Service