The Madras High Court on Wednesday sought the response of the Ministry of Railways and the Southern Railway to a public interest litigation (PIL) petition filed to ensure that all existing as well as future railway stations and trains conform to the specifications prescribed under the Hormonized Guidelines and Standards for Universal Accessibility in India, 2021.
First Division Bench of Chief Justice Sanjay V. Gangapurwala and Justice D. Bharatha Chakravarthy called for the response by June 11. Cross disability rights activist Vaishnavi Jayakumar had filed the PIL petition highlighting the difficulties faced by the physically challenged due to absence of even basic necessities such as ramps, accessible toilets and tactile pathways.
“Several representations have been sent to the authorities requesting that railway infrastructure be made compliant (to the 2021 Hormonized guidelines) given the pivotal role played by the railways in our transport system. However, no action has been taken till date,” the petitioner said and lamented that 90% of the facilities were inaccessible to the physically challenged.
Ms. Jayakumar said, simple measures such as construction of ramps with gentle slope of 1:12 for foot over-bridges, establishing bilateral transfer peninsular accessible toilets, operating wheelchair accessible buggies, providing tactile guidance and ensuring dual height ticket counters could help in making railway stations universally accessible and barrier free.
However, illustrating the present condition of the railway stations, she said, the Chennai Fort station had no ramps for the physically challenged passengers to access the platforms or the ticketing office. It was accessible from the main road only through a steep staircase and the platforms were accessible from the foot overbridge only through steps, she said. Toilets too were inaccessible and it had not tactile warning.
Similarly, at the Egmore railway station, also in Chennai, platform numbers 5,6 and 7 could be accessed only through steps or escalators and there were no ramps. “The tactile paths laid over here are a hazard in themselves as the station lacks warning strips along the platform edge. Toilets are inaccessible and the handrails provided are inadequate,” the petitioner’s affidavit read.
She, however, appreciated an universally accessible ramp that had been laid at the Egmore railway station to access the foot overbridge and said, it was a boon not only to wheelchair users but also to any traveller carrying heavy luggage. The petitioner wanted similar facilities to be provided in all railway stations but rued that it was not being done even under the Amrit Bharat Station scheme.
The petitioner went on to list out how even the train coaches were inaccessible to the physically challenged and sought a solution to the long pending problem.
