Accessibility Statement

This accessibility statement sets out how SJCE Mysore (sjcemysore.org) works to make its heritage archive, guides and shop usable by everyone, including people who use screen readers, keyboard navigation, magnification, voice control or other assistive technologies. Our goal is to meet the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.2 at Level AA. This page describes the features we have built, the known limitations, and how to tell us about a barrier. The site is operated by SJCE Mysore (sjcemysore.org) and is independent of SJCE, JSS Science and Technology University and JSS Mahavidyapeetha.

Our commitment

Our readers include aspiring engineers, parents and grandparents, alumni who studied at SJCE decades ago, and international researchers. Many of them read on low-cost mobile phones over slow connections. Some have low vision, colour blindness, dyslexia, motor impairments, hearing loss or cognitive disabilities. Accessibility is therefore part of how we design, write and test, not an add-on. We consider it at every stage, from choosing colours and writing link text to choosing plugins.

The standard we aim for

WCAG 2.2 is organised under four principles: content must be perceivable, operable, understandable and robust. Level AA is the level most widely referenced in law and policy around the world. It is the benchmark used, for example, by the EU’s harmonised accessibility standard and by many Indian accessibility guidelines. WCAG 2.2 adds criteria that matter especially for our audience, including:

• Focus not obscured (2.4.11): keyboard focus is never hidden behind sticky headers or cookie banners;
• Target size (minimum) (2.5.8): buttons and links are large enough to tap accurately;
• Dragging movements (2.5.7): nothing requires drag-and-drop;
• Consistent help (3.2.6): the contact link appears in the same place on every page;
• Redundant entry (3.3.7): checkout does not make you re-type information you have already given;
• Accessible authentication (3.3.8): logging in does not require a cognitive test, and password managers and paste are allowed.

Accessibility features on this site

Navigation

• Skip link: the first item on every page is a “Skip to main content” link, which becomes visible when it receives keyboard focus. It lets keyboard and screen-reader users bypass the header and menu.
• Full keyboard operation: menus, the table of contents, FAQ accordions, dark-mode and text-size controls, the reading-list button, the contact form, the cookie banner and checkout can all be used with Tab, Shift+Tab, Enter, Space and the arrow keys, with no keyboard traps.
• Visible focus indicator: a high-contrast outline shows which element has focus, in both light and dark mode.
• Landmarks and headings: pages use semantic HTML landmarks (header, navigation, main, footer) and a logical heading hierarchy, so screen-reader users can move around by region or heading.
• Table of contents: long pages have a table of contents linking to each section.
• Consistent layout: navigation, search and help links are in the same place on every page.

Reading and display

• Dark mode: a toggle switches between light and dark colour schemes. Your choice is saved in your browser’s local storage and never sent to us.
• Font size controls: buttons let you increase or decrease the text size, and your choice is remembered on your device. Browser zoom also works. The layout reflows to a single column at 400% zoom with no horizontal scrolling.
• Colour contrast: text and interface colours are chosen to meet WCAG AA contrast ratios: at least 4.5:1 for normal text and 3:1 for large text and interface components. We never use colour alone to convey meaning.
• Readable typography: comfortable line length and spacing, with self-hosted fonts that load quickly. Text spacing can be overridden by user stylesheets without content being lost.
• Plain language: we explain acronyms such as KCET, COMEDK, TEQIP and GATE the first time we use them, and each article starts with a key-facts summary.

Motion and media

• Reduced motion: if your device is set to “reduce motion”, the site respects the prefers-reduced-motion setting and switches off smooth scrolling, transitions and animated effects.
• No autoplay: no audio or video plays automatically, and nothing flashes more than three times per second.
• Images: informative images have descriptive alternative text, and decorative images are hidden from assistive technologies. Captions provide credits and dates.
• Tables: data tables use proper header cells so screen readers can announce rows and columns.

Forms, cookie banner and checkout

• Every form field has a visible label. Required fields are marked in text, not only with colour. Error messages explain what went wrong and how to fix it, and they are announced to screen readers.
• The contact form has no CAPTCHA. Spam is filtered by a hidden honeypot field, so you never have to solve a visual or audio puzzle.
• The consent checkbox and its explanation are properly labelled.
• The CookieYes banner can be operated by keyboard. “Reject” is as easy to reach as “Accept”, and the banner can be reopened from the “Cookie settings” link in the footer.
• WooCommerce checkout fields support browser autofill. Information you have already entered is carried forward where possible.

Performance

All assets are self-hosted, with no third-party fonts, CDNs or trackers. This keeps pages light and fast on slow mobile connections, which benefits everyone and especially people who use assistive technology on low-end devices.

Known limitations

We are honest about where we still fall short:

• Archived documents: some historical documents and scans from SJCE’s earlier website or from other archives may be PDFs or images without full text, structure or alt text. Where we can, we provide a text summary on the page. Ask us for an accessible version of a specific document and we will do our best to provide one.
• Historical images: alternative text for some older archive images may be brief while we work through the collection.
• Third-party payment pages: during checkout, you may be sent to a payment gateway’s page. We do not control its accessibility. If you have difficulty, contact us, and we can arrange an alternative such as a bank transfer.
• Live sessions: live online sessions run on third-party video platforms whose accessibility features vary. Tell us your needs in advance, for example captions, written summaries or extra time, and we will make reasonable adjustments.
• Heritage tour: the walking tour covers outdoor public areas with uneven surfaces, kerbs and some steps. Contact us before booking to discuss a shorter or adapted route.

Compatibility

The site is designed to work with recent versions of major browsers (Chrome, Firefox, Safari and Edge) and with common assistive technologies, including NVDA and JAWS on Windows, VoiceOver on macOS and iOS, TalkBack on Android, and the screen magnification and voice control built into major operating systems. It does not depend on any single browser or plugin.

How we test

• automated checks with accessibility-testing tools during development and after significant theme or plugin updates;
• manual keyboard-only testing of navigation, forms, the cookie banner and checkout;
• screen-reader spot checks on key templates;
• colour-contrast checks for both light and dark themes;
• zoom and reflow testing at 200% and 400%, and testing on small mobile screens;
• a review of new content against our editorial accessibility checklist (headings, link text, alt text, tables) before publication.

We have not yet had an independent third-party audit. This statement is based on our own self-assessment.

Feedback and alternative formats

If you find a barrier on the site, or you need content in another format, please tell us. Alternative formats include plain text, a larger-print PDF or a summary of an archived document. Please include:

• the page URL;
• what you were trying to do and what went wrong;
• the browser and assistive technology you were using, if you are comfortable sharing that.

Contact SJCE Mysore (sjcemysore.org) by email at hello@sjcemysore.org (subject “Accessibility”), by phone on (phone available on request via the contact form), or by post at Mysuru, Karnataka, India. We aim to reply within 5 working days. If a fix will take longer, we will tell you when to expect it and offer you an alternative way to get the information in the meantime.

Legal context

We follow the spirit of India’s Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016, which promotes accessible information and communication technology, as well as international standards. For visitors in Europe, WCAG is the technical basis of the EU harmonised standard EN 301 549 referenced by the European Accessibility Act. If you are not satisfied with our response to an accessibility concern, you may also raise it with our Grievance Officer, whose details are in our Privacy Policy.

Related pages

See our Editorial Policy for how we write accessible content, our Cookie Policy for the local-storage preferences behind dark mode and text size, and Contact us for other questions.