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Cyberabad 'overwhelmingly unfriendly' for people with disabilities: survey

  • According to 2011 census, 2.21 percent of the total population is constituted by persons with disabilities in India.
  • Yet, many public places, institutes, government buildings and other places lacks facilities to persons with disabilities.
Cyberabad overwhelmingly unfriendly for people with disabilities

Cyberabad may be one of the most promising upcoming high-tech zones in India, yet it is not yet accessing for individuals with disabilities, according to a recent survey. The study, titled "How accessible are our public spaces for PWDs? An access study of Cyberabad" conducted by the School of Public Policy and Governance of the Tata Institute of Social Sciences. 

According to this study, most public places and even various government offices, hospitals, schools, and different institutions located in Cyberabad were ‘overwhelmingly unfriendly’ for the persons with disabilities. 

This study covered 30 public and private schools that had obstruction free wide doors and corridors but only 2 private and 3 public schools had ramps to facilitate wheelchairs. However, not a single school had any audible alarm system for any emergencies. 

13 public and also 16 private banks were a part of the analysis and all of them had accessible entrances but heavy doors made it difficult for specially-abled people to open and shut them without help. 

Further, the 28 bus stops that were analysed during the survey lacked facility for the persons with disabilities to move independently. 2 railway stations covered in the survey did not follow the norms of gap between platforms and trains. They lacked ramps or any other facility for people who need them.

Meanwhile, out of 30 government buildings only 5 had accessible entrances. However, the 33 malls that the team studied were found to be reasonably more accessible due to their easy access facility at the entrance. However, these malls lacked audible warning system and only 6 of them had special toilet facility. In other words, malls were friendlier for persons with disabilities than government buildings. 

According to 2011 census, 2.21 percent of the total population is constituted by persons with disabilities in India which is a substantial part of the population. As per a report published in 2016 by the government of India, only 36 percent of total persons with disabilities are workers and one of the reasons for such low rate of employment is failure to provide accessibility for various places.

It is disappointing that a nation that is progressing in technology, IT and various other sectors is still struggling to provide basic accessibility and other nominal facilities for survival to a large sector of the society. This population is capable of contributing to the growth of the nation but first the policy makers and leaders must provide them their basic necessities like access to public places. 
 

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