Visually impaired candidates aspiring for a bank job may now find it a bit easier to compete in the written selection tests conducted by the Institute of Banking Personnel Selection (IBPS).

Although they can currently use a ‘scribe', the practical difficulties include availability, difference in accent, cost among others. . Out of an estimated 1.45 million visually impaired people aged 20 to 29 (according to census data), who are potential candidates, only 9,000 applied for the IBPS's first common written exam for the clerical cadre.

Now, IBPS has together with the National Association for the Blind (NAB) – Bangalore and the International Institute of Information Technology – Bangalore (IIIT-B) launched the “NETRA SARATHY” project to enable visually impaired candidates attempt banking services exams. Under the project, launched by Mr N.R. Narayana Murthy, Chairman Emeritus of Infosys, NAB will convert IBPS's objective tests into an online format; IIIT-B has developed a software that can help the candidates in reading the questions and navigating the question papers comfortably.

Of the 10.34 lakh who wrote the recently concluded exams for probationary officers, there were 1,572 visually impaired candidates, of whom 246 were successful.

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