LotusII’ Deaf Children’s Festival Receives Enthusiastic ResponseA Unique Celebration of Education, Inspiration and Inclusion onHelen Keller’s Birth Anniversary

‘LotusII’ Deaf Children’s Festival Receives Enthusiastic Response

A Unique Celebration of Education, Inspiration and Inclusion on

Helen Keller’s Birth Anniversary

Pune: ‘Lotus II’, a vibrant festival dedicated to promoting the education, creativity and holistic development of deaf children, was recently held at Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar Bhavan in Pune. Organised jointly by Blee Tech Innovations, AssistTech Foundation and CIE India, the event brought together over 350 students, parents, teachers, principals and trainers from deaf schools across Maharashtra.

The event was graced by Adv. Swarada Bapat, Chairperson of the Law Committee, Pune Municipal Corporation; Janhavi Joshi, Founder of Blee Tech Innovations; Prashant Sharma and Pankaj Goyal from CIE India; Dr. Kalyani Mandke, Founder of Mandke Hearing Services; and Sagar Sonawane, Assistant Inspector, Department of Social Welfare.

Addressing the gathering, Janhavi Joshi highlighted Blee Tech Innovations’ commitment to providing quality and inclusive education to deaf students through Indian Sign Language (ISL). She shared that the organisation has built a network of more than 60 deaf schools across the state and has established over 30 hybrid digital libraries to enhance accessible learning. The organisation’s initiatives have benefited more than 5,000 students and over 20,000 members of the deaf community. She also expressed gratitude to CIE India for its CSR support in advancing inclusive education.

Speaking on the occasion, Adv. Swarada Bapat appreciated the organisation’s efforts towards inclusive education. She noted that initiatives such as ISL-based learning, hybrid digital libraries, teaching by deaf educators, and capacity-building programmes for parents and teachers are creating meaningful opportunities for the deaf community and setting an inspiring example for society.

One of the major highlights of the festival was a special Indian Sign Language (ISL) screening of the film Srikanth. The audience also enthusiastically enjoyed performances by deaf students and trainers, including theatrical presentations and interactive activities.

Organised to commemorate the birth anniversary of Helen Keller, the festival reinforced the values of education, self-reliance, equal opportunities and an inclusive society, while celebrating the talent and potential of deaf children.

The programme was compered by Aniket Tamchikar and Unnati Pardhi, while the vote of thanks was delivered by Deepti Deorukhkar.