New Delhi: Veena Mehta is a crusedar in her own world. Born without eyesight, this 27-year-old from Jodhpur has fought a hard battle in every sphere of her life to establish herself as an independent, self-sufficient individual and also create an identity for herself.

Today, as she scans through a heap of resumes, looking for the right candidates for the software firm she works for, she is not allowing her disability to stand on her path of progress. This, despite the fact that her eyes can neither see nor register what's on the screen.

Her parents gave up on Veena early in her life to become more than a disabled daughter whom they would have to support all her life.

But Veena decided to take charge of her life and steer it where she likes to. She took charge of her own destiny and moved to Delhi where she completed her MBA.

"When I was a child, I never got much support. Support is all people need to make a difference. I meet so many people who are insecure. They just lack support. I never had anyone to support me. I would just talk to myself and find support for myself," Veena recalls.

And when she applied for a job in a software firm in Noida, the management was bowled over by her determination to make
what some would call a disability her strength.

Veena first joined the company in the help desk. But within a matter of months, she was promoted to the HR department. She works through a special software that converts written words to sound.

Her performance over the past years not only impressed the management. More importantly, this has shattered the myth of disability.

Admits Biplab Basu, Networks Manager, FSC Software Consultancy, "She is a terrific worker. She gives 110 per cent in everything she does. She is always ready for challenges and is always trying to do better work."

The software firm took a huge step forward. It employed four young men, all visually challenged.

And today, these young men are practically the backbone of the organisation, handling a bustling help desk all by themselves.

"Everyone thinks we can't do anything," Says Amit Mehta, one of the four. "It's amazing what a little bit of confidence can do to change all that!"

And these aren’t the only lives this young woman has touched. After work, she spends the rest of the evening counselling blind children, who are in desperate need of reassurance and emotional support.

Veena’s ultimate dream is to make a name for herself as an HR executive in the corporate sector. And given her track record, it's not difficult to imagine her getting there in practically no time at all.

But the bigger task at hand for her right now, as she says, is to make more blind people believe that they can see even though the world believes that they can't.

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