The first National Conference on “AI for Empowering Persons with Disabilities” organized by the Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities (DEPwD), under the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment in collaboration with the Artificial Limbs Manufacturing Corporation of India (ALIMCO) was held on May 30, 2025, at The Lalit, Bengaluru.
The event brought together leading experts, government officials, technologists, and advocates, all working together to harness the transformative potential of AI in promoting inclusive development for persons with disabilities. Four major AI and accessibility-centered initiatives were launched: Mission AI Accessibility; Mission AI: Implementation of AI in Assistive Technologies and Tools for Empowering People with Disabilities; National Disability Support AI Chatbot; and United Benefits Interface (UBI).
The other speakers at the event include Shri. Rajesh Aggarwal, Secretary of DEPwD, Prof. Venu Govindaraju, Distinguished Professor, Department of Computer Science, University at Buffalo, USA (via video conference), Prof. P.V.M. Rao and Prof. Rohan Paul, Professors, IIT Delhi, Dr. Buddha Chandrashekhar, CEO, Anuvadhini; Ms. Pragya Misra, Partnerships Lead, OpenAI – India; Ms. Amrita Kamat, Representative, Google India; and Mr. Abhishek Singh, Additional Secretary, Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) and Director General, National Informatics Centre (NIC), New Delhi.
In his keynote, Shri. Rajesh Aggarwal, Secretary of DEPwD, emphasized how advancements in deep learning, robotics, and computer vision can transform and significantly improve the quality of life for people with disabilities. Complementing this vision, ALIMCO Chairman and Managing Director, Shri. Praveen Kumar, attended and reiterated his organization’s dedication to innovative assistive technology and inclusive design.
At the conference Prof. Prema Nedungadi, Associate Dean, Amrita School of Computing, Amritapuri, Director, Amrita CREATE, and UNESCO Chair on Assistive Technology for Education spoke on the topic “How Assistive Technologies is Changing Life.” In the talk, Prof. Nedungadi discussed how compassion-driven research at Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham is inspired by Chancellor AMMA’s emphasis on equity and justice, championing the cause of persons with disabilities through initiatives like setting up schools for deaf students (Amrita Speech & Hearing Improvement School – ASISH) and for children with intellectual disabilities (Amrita Institute for the Differently Abled – AIDA), among others.
The Amrita team is committed to revolutionizing accessibility through the development of innovative assistive technologies, including an AI chatbot and a sophisticated video recognition system for Indian Sign Language (ISL), ensuring that e-governance services on the UMANG platform accessible to the deaf community. The team is developing an AI-driven platform that automatically generates audio descriptions and ISL for visual content. This groundbreaking project aims to enhance the user experience for blind and low-vision users. Leading by example, Prof. Nedungadi emphasized the importance of building inclusive teams, comprising persons with disabilities and neurodiverse people, to design and develop technologies, ensuring that inclusion is not an afterthought.
In light of its significant contributions to developing scalable, inclusive, and technology-driven solutions over the years, Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham has recently been designated India’s first UNESCO Chair on Assistive Technologies in Education, chaired by Prof. Prema Nedungadi and co-chaired by Prof. Raghu Raman directly aligned with UN SDGs 4 (Quality Education), 10 (Reduced Inequalities), and 17 (Partnerships for the Goals). The various projects led by the AI and Disability Studies research tag were exhibited at the conference, which was well received by experts, participants, and dignitaries, fostering future pathways for collaborations.
The Amrita team that attended the conference included Dr. Geetha M, Chairperson CSE (AI), School of Computing, Amritapuri, and Professor, School of Computing, Amritapuri, and team from Amrita CREATE, Dr. Rajlakshmi Kanjilal, Project Manager, Mr. Gautham K. Dileep, Project Lead, Mr. Rajeevan K, ISL interpreter, Mr. Amal Krishnan U C, Research Associate and PhD Scholar, ISL interpreters Mr. Mr. Hashim C P, and Mr. Nikhil Das P M.
