In a first, the Agra railway division launched a unique initiative on Thursday (September 14) aimed at providing sign language training to some of the employees stationed at 12 prominent railway stations, including Dholpur, Mathura, Idgah, and Agra Fort.
According to the official, back in April 2023, the division selected as many as 40 employees to undergo sign language training.
These trained employees were subsequently assigned to work at ticket windows and inquiry help desks at the Agra station. Their role was to provide assistance to passengers who were speech and hearing impaired.
40 trained frontline staff at 12 prominent stations
Prashasti Srivastava, PRO, Agra Division informed that they realised that this has been an extremely useful exercise for Divyangjan passengers and hence they decided to depute these 40 trained frontline staff as master trainers to train other employees at 12 prominent stations. It may be noted that Agra is one of the 66 railway divisions in the country.
Srivastava informed PTI that in early April, the division collaborated with volunteers from the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan in Agra district to conduct a week-long workshop at the division office for 40 employees. During this workshop, they were trained in fundamental skills such as assisting passengers with disabilities in finding ticket windows, providing information on train timings, platform locations, and the location of public amenities. These employees were then deployed as frontline staff at the Agra station, where the results of the experiment were highly encouraging.
“This is the first of its kind initiative out of all the railway divisions and we are going to extend it to other prominent stations also,” she added.
Agra station, like many others, is equipped with Braille signage to assist visually impaired passengers, and this new initiative is seen as a step forward in promoting inclusivity within the railway system, she further stated.
(With inputs from PTI)