MADURAI
Over 200 members of Tamil Nadu Association for the Rights of All Types of Differently Abled and Caregivers (TARATDAC) laid siege to the office of the Divisional Railway Manager (Madurai) on Tuesday, pressing for a charter of demands.
Led by State secretary of the association T. Wilson, the protesters from southern districts squatted in front of the office before their representatives held talks with DRM Neenu Ittyerah and dispersed.
The protesters wanted all wings of government across India to accept the identity cards issued to differently abled persons under the provisions of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016. The railways should not insist on differently abled persons getting a separate identity card from the railway administration. This caused unnecessary inconvenience to them, they said.
Stating that senior citizens who got concession in train ticket fares were allowed to show their proof of identity to Travelling Ticket Examiners during the journey, the association members demanded a similar facility for the differently abled. “Now, differently abled people are made to go to reservation counters to book tickets,” he said.
All differently abled persons, who were categorised under 21 different types of disabilities, should be provided a uniform concession of 75% and this should also be given for tatkal tickets and on all types of trains, including Suvidha Express. Lower berths should be reserved for the differently abled and their attendants, they stressed.
The protesters complained about lack of dedicated special coaches for the differently abled in Linke Hofmann Busch (LHB) rakes. “We are allotted two seats in unreserved coaches which creates severe difficulties. Lack of toilets meant for the differently abled causes more inconvenience, especially to the crawling persons,” said association functionary P. Muthuganthari.
Making railway premises differently abled-friendly, with special platforms, coaches and toilets, allowing free rides in battery-operated cars on railway premises and 4% reservation for the differently abled in railway recruitment were their other demands.
The protesters later said the DRM told their representatives that the facilities they had demanded at the divisional level would be gradually introduced and their other demands involving policy decisions would be taken to the notice of the Railway Board.
