Dinesh Kamath's Editorial 'Do justice to the disabled' that was published in Newsband

Do justice to the disabled

Tamil Nadu government should be lauded for making rules to create special facilities for the disabled in urban local bodies. As per the rule, all multi-storeyed buildings with more than two floors should be equipped with ramps, lifts and other appropriate provisions for the disabled. This rule is applicable to all educational institutions, health care and banking services, leisure and recreation facilities, shopping malls, industries and much else as falling within their purview. The measure will make a material difference in the lives of large numbers of people with locomotor impairments, who deserve to enjoy constitutionally guaranteed right to freedom of mobility. This rule will benefit the population aged 60 years and above and the disabled. In other words the elderly, too, will benefit from the convenience of ramps and not just wheel-chair users.

Previously, no action was taken along this direction because it was felt that the cost of providing special provisions for the disabled was too much and far outweighed the gains. Such an argument was at best a convenient cloak for inaction. But Tamil Nadu government has set an example by ensuring equality of opportunities for the disabled.

Commensurate measures ought to be initiated in the arenas of education and employment. Training skilled personnel for sign-language interpretation for the hearing impaired, developing technologies for people with low-vision and the introduction of reasonable accommodation in the workplace are important among them. In their absence, the right to free and compulsory education would remain a distant dream for children with impairments and the wider objective of an inclusive society.

The Tamil Nadu rules stipulate a 180-day deadline for implementation. Other States in the country should follow this lead.

Much more is required to be done for the disabled. Preferential treatment should be given to them. Instead of treating them as persons with 'disability' we need to regard them as persons with 'Special ability.' All the able people should not leave any stone unturned to make the lives of the disabled absolutely pleasant.