Hearing impairment, or any apparent limitation, should not be allowed to define what a person can achieve, Chief Justice Alpesh Y. Kogje of the Madhya Pradesh High Court told children with hearing and speech impairment at a Sign Language Week programme organised by the State Legal Services Authority in Jabalpur.
Jabalpur: The Madhya Pradesh State Legal Services Authority (MPSLSA) held a day-long programme titled “अनुगूँज से उद्घोष” for children with hearing and speech impairment at the MPSLSA Auditorium in Jabalpur to mark Sign Language Week, with sessions designed to equip adolescents to handle social, emotional, digital and academic challenges through sign-language-inclusive learning.
The programme was addressed by Chief Justice Alpesh Y. Kogje, Patron-in-Chief of MPSLSA, Justice Vivek Rusia, Administrative Judge of the High Court and Executive Chairman of MPSLSA, and Justice Vivek Agarwal of the High Court.
What the programme covered
The interactive sessions dealt with legal rights and access to justice, emotional well-being, creative opportunities, career guidance, prevention of violence against children, digital safety and cyber awareness, along with a session for parents and group activities conducted in sign language. A video titled “Meri Awaaz Suno” was released during the event, and the most active participants were felicitated.
Chief Justice: ability is not fixed by limitation
In his keynote address, Chief Justice Kogje congratulated the children on completing the programme and welcomed the opportunity it gave them to share their experiences and aspirations. He said that the fact that one person can do something today which another cannot does not by itself point to any inherent shortcoming, and urged the children to look past perceived limitations with determination, disciplined habits and faith in their own abilities.
Interpreters, mediation and a café at Gwalior
Justice Rusia outlined MPSLSA’s ongoing work on education, employment, access to justice and communication support for persons with hearing and speech impairment. Responding to issues raised by participants, he said such concerns should be taken up with the relevant Government authorities so that solutions could be facilitated.
Stressing the role of trained sign-language interpreters in making legal and dispute-resolution processes accessible, he recounted a case from Gwalior in which a couple with hearing and speech impairment resolved their matrimonial dispute through mediation conducted with the help of interpreters. After their reconciliation, he said, the couple was helped to set up a café on the High Court campus at Gwalior, which they now run successfully.
Early Intervention For Children With Hearing Impairment
Justice Agarwal said children with hearing and speech impairment must be treated as an integral part of society and included as friends and equals in everyday activities. He emphasised early identification of hearing impairment so that technological advances and support systems can be used effectively, and called for children’s interests and aptitudes to be identified and backed with training that opens the way to employment and an independent livelihood. The children, he said, have every right to give new wings to their dreams, and society must partner them in realising those aspirations.
Those present
Krishnamurthy Mishra, Principal District and Sessions Judge, Jabalpur; Umesh Pandav, Director, Madhya Pradesh State Judicial Academy; officers of the Academy; and officers and staff of MPSLSA attended the programme. It was conducted by Aniruddha Jain, Deputy Secretary, MPSLSA, and Pradeep Thakur, District Legal Aid Officer, MPSLSA, and Suman Shrivastava, Member Secretary, MPSLSA, proposed the vote of thanks.
Event: “अनुगूँज से उद्घोष”, programme for children with hearing and speech impairment
Organised by: Madhya Pradesh State Legal Services Authority
Venue: MPSLSA Auditorium, Jabalpur
Occasion: Sign Language Week, 2026