We work on the crucial issue of early childhood deafness. The most unique aspect about our work is that we not only teach deaf children but also their parents/family members – thus ensuring that the training is sustainable and that parents/family members are equipped to handle the child’s needs of communication, learning and comprehension. Further, VAANI works with teachers in government schools, local CBO’s and Government departments, gram panchayats, and the general public, to raise awareness about the issues of childhood deafness, and also has a presence on high-level decision making bodies to effect changes in policy towards deaf education. With this holistic approach to the issue of childhood deafness, VAANI ensures that every aspect of the deaf child’s ecosystem is sensitized, trained and impacted.

We integrate ourselves at the grassroots level within communities and work towards identifying a deaf child as early on in their life as possible. We train our Teachers of the Deaf with specialized technical methods to bring communication, language and comprehension into the lives of deaf children and their families. We then create an empathetic and enthusiastic environment for every deaf child and empower its families to nurture it. VAANI addresses the social and emotional needs of deaf children and their families by focusing on early identification and delivering the right kind of intervention based on their needs, and cultural and socio-economic context. VAANI then builds up the capacity of the parent to be advocates for the rights of their children.

During the 16 years of our activity in India, mainly Northeast, East & Karnataka, we have worked with 85,900 direct and indirect beneficiaries, comprising around 12200 deaf children, 24400 parents, 10,300 professionals and 39,000 general public.

For past 8 years we have been working in Karnataka with focus on Rural Bangalore and Tumkur District. Major program being undertaken are New Born Hearing Screening and Educational Assistance for Deaf children 0-16 years, Awareness/Trainings for Community Based Rehabilitation professionals.