Access Audit in Gawhati, Assam

Seventy million Indians with disabilities are daily undergoing the trauma of not having access to schools, offices, cinema halls, parks, shops and banks, making them unable to play an active role in everyday life though they have the capacity to do so. It is with this aim of highlighting the crucial issue that Pragati, a confederation of organisations working for the disabled in the city, is conducting an 'access audit' in six public buildings here on March 15 and 16 to see how accessible these are for persons with disabilities. This drive is part of a coordinated countrywide campaign to highlight the cause of disability and related issues, besides creating an awareness on this vital issue of accessibility for all.

This access audit drive coverrd Landmark Hotel, Deputy Commissioner's office, State Bank of India's main branch and Downtown Hospital. The agenda includes Guwahati Railway Station and Anuradha Cinema hall. Smt Ketaki Bardalai, coordinator for the access audit, stated that the blatant violation of the Disabilities Act can be gauged by the fact that 95 percent of the public buildings in the city are inaccessible to persons with disabilities. She also expressed concern that new buildings are coming up everywhere with little concern for this. She regretted that even after six years of the Act coming into force, the lot of the disabled of the region has remained the same.

On the repercussions of violation of the Disabilities Act, Smt Bardalai said disabled persons, especially the children, were being deprived of basic facilities like education, training, employment, etc. Even simple acts like boarding a bus to reach school, college or office, going to an office or bank, or going to a shop to buy a shirt can be very difficult and at times even humiliating for them. Besides the physical aspect of barrier, there has always been the attitudinal barrier. Sri PK Pincha, former Joint Director of the Department of Social Welfare, rued that lots of disabled but otherwise competent students were not getting access to schools because of faulty construction. He appealed to the authority concerned to take steps to ensure that new buildings in the city including the new capital complex at Dispur, adhered to the norms of accessibility.

Implementing the Act is the responsibility of not only the Department of Social Welfare, but it calls for a coordinated approach from various departments and agencies.

The Department of Social Welfare and Actionaid India have been actively supporting Pragati in its drives. The audit team comprises persons with disabilities and organisations and representations from the Architects Association of Assam while the IIT Guwahati is lending its technical support. After completion of the audit, Pragati will prepare a report compiling its observations and recommendations which will be submitted to the authorities with a practical deadline for compliance. Depending on the outcome, it may go for more audits in future.

Source: Move to study accessibility of city buildings to disabled. The Assam Tribune, March 15, 2002, Guwahati, India