Patna Women’s College Hosts Lecture on Sign Language Rights for International Week for Deaf People

Chirag Gupta

Patna: The Department of English and Lexicon, the Language Club of Patna Women’s College, in collaboration with the Linguistic Empowerment Cell of Jawaharlal Nehru University, organized an online guest lecture to celebrate the International Week for Deaf People 2024. Dr. Sandesha Rayapa, Assistant Professor at JNU’s Linguistic Empowerment Cell, was the guest speaker, with coordination from Dr. Preeti Das, Chief Coordinator of the Cell.

The event, themed “Sign up for Sign Language Rights,” began with a brief discussion on responses collected through a Google form circulated earlier. Dr. Rayapa’s presentation introduced the Indian Sign Languages and debunked common misconceptions surrounding them. She also noted the creation of 2,500 new name signs for use in the academic domain.

The lecture included useful tips for communicating with Deaf individuals and guidelines for effective communication through an interpreter. Dr. Rayapa emphasized the benefits of learning Indian Sign Languages, including easier communication and enhanced bilingual learning.

The session concluded with an interactive activity where participants learned name signs for basic phrases and greetings. The event, guided by Dr. Sahar Rahman, Head of the Department of English at Patna Women’s College, was successfully coordinated by Dr. Devina Krishna, Assistant Professor and Coordinator of Lexicon, and concluded with a vote of thanks by Stuti.