Kerala to make courts accessible to the disabled
It is obvious that a majority of public buildings and services suffer from major accessibility constraints, especially for people with locomotor disabilities.
It is obvious that a majority of public buildings and services suffer from major accessibility constraints, especially for people with locomotor disabilities.
It is obvious that a majority of public buildings and services suffer from major accessibility constraints, especially for people with locomotor disabilities.
Off late, the Kerala government has introduced several new projects and provisions in favor of, and to improve accessibility for, people who are differently abled. A recent move by the Kerala government that is much talked of by the members of the disabled community is the decision to introduce exclusive court sessions for persons with disabilities in Kerala.
It is obvious that a majority of public buildings and services suffer from major accessibility constraints, especially for people with locomotor disabilities. Recognizing the fact that persons with disabilities have to undergo numerous struggles even to file cases and attend court hearings, has motivated the government to offer up separate court sessions for persons with disabilities. The arrangements for such a move have begun from the month of February.
This is indeed a novel and much appreciated move from the Kerala state government that has always stood up for empowering disabled people. According to the Rights of Persons with disabilities Act, 2016, state governments must have special provisions to handle cases of people with disabilities. That is precisely the reason why the government introduced this new facility. It will be introduced in all districts across the state.
The government has also assured that the court building and premises will be disabled friendly. They will have exclusive accessible parking spaces where disabled people can park their cars at the entrance of the court. They will also have wheelchair ramps for people with loco motor disabilities. Since cases of people without disabilities are not going to be handled at the court, disabled people do not have to wait in long queues to get justice. Having accessible court premises would be a good step towards making all public buildings accessible.
Disabled people, activists and NGO’s have been raising complaints about the difficulties that they face while fighting a case at Indian courts. Since there are no proper facilities for seating arrangements, they often get tired waiting for long hours. But not anymore. These new court premises will have special seating arrangements for people with all kinds of disabilities.
Decisions pertaining to working days of the court, the different cases and the number of cases that will be taken up will be decided by the Judge.
The government’s move has been received with unbridled enthusiasm from the disabled community in Kerala. The community welcomes it as a good first step towards making all public spaces accessible. The Kerala government is indeed proving that it recognizes the fact that access to public spaces is a right and not a privilege to be enjoyed by a few.
Moreover, it is also important to, above all, ensure that redressal mechanisms exist and are functioning in an accessible manner, in order to implement the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act of 2016. If mechanisms exist for redressing the grievances of persons with disabilities, I do not doubt that more people will come forward with accessibility cases, thus taking our society forward, step by step, towards an accessible world, truly inclusive to all.