Man with multiple disabilities seeks school edu min’s aid

CHENNAI: Miranda Donbosco Tomkinson (43) is both deaf and blind. With master’s in special education and 11 years’ of experience in teaching and academics, Miranda now seeks the help of school education minister Anbil Mahesh Poyyamozhi.

Interacting with DT Next over WhatsApp due to hearing and visual disability, Miranda says the Tamil Nadu education department is the ideal place for him to share his knowledge, bring in more inclusivity and also get the right exposure. Miranda works as a teacher in an institute in the outskirts of Chennai.

“Firstly, I need job security. Also, the TN education department has implemented a slew of schemes and benefits for persons with disabilities. With that, we can help several persons with multiple disabilities, as TN lacks awareness in that area.”

L Rexy Vinotha (26), his wife, is a special educator at a private school in Tiruchy. She lives in Tiruchy with their baby boy. She says it was Miranda’s resilience and willpower that keeps him going.

“Since he cannot hear and see, he interacts with people with the help of an orbit reader (a machine that converts WhatsApp texts into Braille). We can send a WhatsApp message to his number and the orbit reader will convert it into Braille script and reply to us,” explains Rexy.

Despite his disabilities, Miranda commutes alone in public transport from his house in Ayanavaram to Muttukadu. “He learned to operate and use smartphone all by himself, and refused help from others. Miranda is keen about learning excel, but I haven’t found the right person to teach him,” she adds.

Rexy adds that her husband is good at teaching and counselling students. “In the spirit of inclusivity, the government and school education minister should pay heed to his request,” urges Rexy.

Meanwhile, the department of Welfare of Differently-abled Persons tells DT Next that Miranda’s request will be forwarded, as it will surely inspire others.