Chennai deaf school helps police with sign language interpreting

The Chennai Police who suspected a 25-year-old deaf Lingiah of committing theft were in a fix recently as they did not know how to talk to him and complete their questioning.

So, the police took help of the Church of South India (CSI) School for the Deaf to help interpret what the suspect was saying.

The deaf school has been offering this kind of help to the police and the court since 2014 at no cost.

The school has 32 teachers and all are trained sign language interpreters.

The sign language interpreters first try to develop trust of the deaf suspects by asking them details such as their name and other personal information.

Most of the deaf suspects reveal that they opt to steal out of hunger and because society does not provide them with jobs.

The police say that, at times, deaf teenagers are used by criminals to protect themselves.

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