CBP Building

Central Braille Press, Dehradun

Empowering Persons with Visual Impairment

● Through Braille since 1951

● Through Large Print format since 2012

● Through E-Pub format Digital Accessible Material from 2025

● Through Tactile Diagram Material from 2025

Evolution

Established in 1951 in Dehradun, Uttarakhand, the Central Braille Press is the first Press in India and one of the oldest Braille presses in Asia. It was set up by the Government of India to make Braille literature available to the visually impaired.

The press combines traditional printing methods with modern computerized high-speed Braille embossers, all under one roof.

● A leading unit producing Braille literature: NCERT & SCERT Textbooks, Reference Books, Religious Books, Braille Publications and General Interest Books for PwVI.

● Plays a crucial role in democratic participation by printing Braille ballot papers, voter slips, and guides for visually impaired voters across six states including Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, and Punjab.

Regional Braille Press, Chennai

Established in 2008 at the NIEPVD Regional Centre in Poonamallee, Chennai. It features four high-speed computerized Braille embossers (Braillo 440SW and 650SW models), primarily producing school textbooks for southern India.

Objective

● To undertake production, promotion, and distribution of Braille literature material.

● To establish liaison and support with different stakeholders.

● Braille literature is published in Assamese, Garo, Bangla, English, Kannada, Hindi, Khasi, Punjabi, Lusai, Nagamese, Tamil, Sanskrit, Telugu, and Urdu.

Key Services

● Providing Braille Books & Educational Material free of cost from class 1 to 12 under the SIPDA Scheme.

● Transcription and Printing in Braille using advanced technology.

Production for 2024–25

Braille Volumes: 65,351

Value of Production: Rs. 1,51,80,552/-

Value of Sales: Rs. 1,78,99,365/-

E-Pub Books Production

CBP has initiated production of E-PUB books which are compatible with screen readers and Braille display devices. This supports the Accessible India Campaign (Sugamya Bharat Abhiyan) by promoting digital accessibility, multilingual support, and faster distribution.

Tactile Material Production

Equipped with a 2D printer (View Plus Machine) and a 3D printer (Pratham 3.0), CBP provides tactile diagrams and 3D models to support science, maths, and geography education for visually impaired students.

Large Print Press

Established in March 2012 at NIEPVD Dehradun to provide large print books in preferred size, font, and color combinations. Books are supplied to children in Uttarakhand, Haryana, Chandigarh, and Delhi.

Objectives

● Increase accessibility and serve specific reader groups.

● Provide reading materials in large print to low vision individuals.

● Promote Literacy and Inclusion.

● Expand content access in large print.

Key Services

● Free large print books from class 1 to 8 under SIPDA Scheme.

● Transcription and Printing in Large Print using advanced technology.

Production for 2024–25

Volumes: 48,446

Production Value: Rs. 56,52,221/-

Sales Value: Rs. 90,86,838/-

SIPDA Scheme Project

Since 2014, the Braille Press Project under SIPDA Scheme of DEPwD has modernized 25 Braille Presses. Initially for school textbooks, the project now includes college-level materials, talking books, E-PUBs, and large print books to enhance educational accessibility for PwVI.