The Railways will introduce Braille stickers in coaches to help visually-impaired people navigate their way. The Braille stickers would be in the form of metallic base with printed characters embedded on it.
Currently, the signages made of vinyl stickers or metallic plates carrying instructions and seat numbers are used in trains.
The railways had received suggestions that Braille stickers be used for the benefit of the visually challenged.
“The first prototype coach is expected to be turned out from ICF in October 2013 for feedback. This is expected to be a major step for facilitation of visually-impaired passengers during journey in trains,” Railway Ministry officials said.
Officials said that the Chennai-based Integral Coach Factory (ICF), a production unit of the Indian Railways, has developed the specification for integrated Braille signages in coaches in consultations with Blind Associations .
Several inputs received from Research Design and Standards Organisation (RDSO) have also been implemented.
The Braille printing will be superimposed on these stickers and same can be used by both a person with normal vision and visually impaired person.
The stickers would be of superior quality, the embedded picture or characters would not get defaced easily even on repeated use.
Being made of flexible metal foil base and adhesive backing, the stickers would be easy to install on flat as well as on curved surfaces of the coach, the Railways Ministry officials added.