Need of Railway Disabled Passenger Rights Act - argues SN Mathur, former MD of Railway Finance Corporation

Railways and Disability Rights

By S N Mathur |  24th June 2013 

The European Union’s legislation on passenger rights that became effective in December 2009 sets out minimum quality standards that have to be guaranteed to rail passengers. Inter alia, it lays down the right to transport for passengers with reduced mobility and is a major step in ensuring that these passengers can travel in a way that is comparable to other citizens. Railway companies have been mandated to provide them assistance on board as well as during boarding and disembarking from a train, free of charge. The stated objective of this legislation is to safeguard users’ rights for passengers and to improve the quality and effectiveness of rail passenger services in order to help increase the share of rail transport in relation to other modes of transport.

In some European countries, there are commercial agreements between the station manager and the railway undertaking to help passengers in boarding and alighting from trains. In several others, information about the meeting place and the type of disability is sent by email, and the station staff then waits for the passenger at the agreed location. In Sweden, the ministry of transport has decided that such assistance should be provided by a neutral body accessible to all operators. The company contracted for this work takes charge of bringing the customer to the platform and the train, and thereafter the train operator’s staff helps the passenger to board the train. In Italy, passengers with reduced mobility can notify their need for assistance to the dedicated service centres set up by the infrastructure manager; specialised ground staff, dedicated to supporting persons with reduced mobility then help those who have asked for assistance to board or alight from trains. In Slovenia, special lifts have been purchased to enable wheelchair users to board trains at major stations. And, in the Netherlands, all the trains managed by Arriva — the largest private operator in the country — have a sliding step that enables disabled persons to get on and off trains without assistance.

In India, the government enacted the People with Disabilities, Equal Opportunities and Protection of Rights Act in 1995 that provides for equal opportunities and facilities for the physically challenged. Subsequently, comprehensive instructions were issued by Indian Railways in 2007 for setting up various facilities at stations and in the trains for the disabled.

Replying to a question in the Lok Sabha in 2010, the minister of railways had stated that  specially designed Second class Luggage-cum-Guard coaches, known as SLRD, had been declared as unreserved coaches, fully earmarked for physically handicapped persons in all mail/express trains (except fully reserved trains). She had further elaborated that about 680 pairs of mail/express trains except special type trains (Rajdhani, Shatabdi, Jan Shatabdi, AC Special and Duronto) had been provided with one SLRD coach, and that all Garib Rath trains had been provided with coach having accommodation for physically handicapped persons.

Unfortunately, even today, the assistance provided to a wheelchair-bound passenger is only minimal. The problems encountered by persons with restricted mobility while travelling by train are many and call for urgent remedial measures. The coaches for the disabled are reported to be two feet high and over one foot away from the platform without a ramp. The coaches are also generally unreserved and a disabled person would rarely prefer travelling unreserved as it may compromise with his safety and convenience.

Inter-platform transfer continues to be a major irritant. In the words of an aggrieved passenger, “the basic issue of inter-platform transfer seems to have been entirely ignored. I have always been taken as a luggage over the railway tracks by a coolie, putting me as a passenger at a higher risk of accidents than anybody else”. Another passenger laments that at a station in Delhi there was no arrangement for any wheelchair and he had to be transported on a luggage cart across the tracks through a dimly lighted area that was risky and dangerous.

It is to be regretted that the booklet “Trains at a Glance” containing the timetable and other information for rail travelers makes only a passing mention of the assistance available to passengers with reduced mobility. It merely states that 150 ‘A’ class stations have been identified for providing booths for making assistance available to the physically challenged. Had the Indian Railways cared enough, it should have given the names of all the stations where such facilities have been provided, with detailed information about the availability of ramps, accessible toilets, services at stations, and the meeting points where the disabled passenger can meet the station staff before joining the train. This would have been extremely helpful not only to the domestic but also to the foreign travelers who visit India to experience the romance of rail journeys.

It is not that Indian Railways are unmindful of the requirements of travelers with special needs, but what is lacking is the proper implementation, supervision and monitoring of the facilities that have been provided so far, and a well-formulated plan for upgrading these to international standards. One fails to see the seriousness of railways’ intent in reaching out to the disabled, and assuring them that they are no less privileged than its other customers. As things stand today, the procedures for getting wheelchairs at the stations have not been streamlined, there is absence of trained staff to escort disabled passengers to the train, and the ramps over which wheelchairs can be moved from the platform to the coach have not been made available. Concessions in train fares are not sufficient to incentivise the disabled to travel by train. They must also be made to feel that they are not being discriminated against.

Perhaps there is a strong case for bringing out a separate Railway Disabled Passenger Rights Act so that access to special facilities at railway stations and trains can be demanded by passengers as a matter of right, enforceable by law, and with penalties on the transporter in the event these are not made available. To begin with, the Act may cover only the major railway stations, and later be extended to other stations in a planned, phased and time-bound manner.

The author Mr. S N Mathur is a former MD of Railway Finance Corporation.

E-mail: mathur.surendra@gmail.com

Source: New Indian Express

Air India at receiving end for mishandling needs of disabled passenger

Dear Colleagues, 

Ever since the Air India outsourced the entire operation at the Terminal 3, Delhi Airport to an external agency, there are frequent reports of mistreatment meted out to passengers with disabilities. Earlier, there were fewer complaints when Air India staff received the passengers with special needs and handled the airport operations. 

While the DGCA's CAR is enforceable also on the agency to which the work is outsourced when it comes to passenger's amenities more so mandatory requirements to be met regarding rights of persons with disabilities during their carriage by air. In this case, Air India cannot escape the blame for the vicarious liability for it is the solemn duty of the national carrier to ensure that the rights of the passengers with disabilities are respected and enforced as per the DGCA's CAR on the carriage of persons with disabilities and person with reduced mobility by Air.

This time thee incident happened with none other than Mr. Javed Abidi of the NCPEDP fame who currently is also serving as the Chair- Disabled People's International (DPI). Javed returned to Delhi from Tokyo on Wednesday evening on Air India Flight AI-307 along with a companion after a 10 hours 40 minutes long flight.  He had been assured by the cabin crew before they landed that a message had been sent to the Delhi ground staff to ensure that his wheelchair was brought to the aircraft.

While all the passengers disembarked at Delhi, Javed had to wait an additional one hour inside the aircraft as the airline sent his wheelchair to the baggage pick-up area inside the terminal and which had to be retrieved. As an internationally established rule, if a person with disability is travelling with his or her wheelchair, it should be brought to the aircraft for the passenger to exit on the same wheelchair for wheelchairs are highly customized mobility equipments almost like a part of the body and cannot be just replaced by any ordinary wheelchair.

The worst part was that while Javed and his companion were still on board the flight, the cleaning staff began their operation disregarding his very presence in the aircraft. This shows an ugly face of the aviation sector and their attitude to disability and the dire need of training and sensitization not only the airline and aerodrome staff but also the operators/ agencies who are increasingly engaged for outsourcing the passenger handling job by the national carrier.

It is shocking for all of us to see that even the regulator- the DGCA continues to treat such lapses with relative ease and indifference which only reinforce the lackadaisical attitude of the airliners and aerodrome operators. It’s high time that the existing penal provisions are forcefully used against the defaulting agencies and hit them hard where it pinches most – the financial penalties. 

Here are the news coverage by Mail Online India & Times of India.

Coverage in Mail Online India

WHIPLASH: The ugly face of the aviation sector revealed in attitudes to disability

By SUHAS MUNSHI

PUBLISHED: 22:12 GMT, 21 March 2013 | UPDATED: 22:12 GMT, 21 March 2013

It is pathetic that people with disabilities continue to be ill-treated and humiliated by airlines in this country. 

From the end of a ten hour 40 minute flight of IC 307 when all the passengers disembarked the planed, Javed Abidi must have spent each moment in the hour long wait for his wheelchair realising how dependent on the hospitality of others he really was, till the chair finally showed up at the doors. 

Half of that time was spent in negotiations of how Abidi could instead opt to be seated in the standard service wheelchair, while his custom designed wheelchair was being searched for, only to be humiliatingly shifted once again to his own chair. 

He may have hardened to condescension over time but being parcelled around, no self-respecting man will suffer. And Javed Abidi is not self-pitying or resigned to his fate. He happens to be the director of the National Centre for Promotion of Employment for Disabled People (NCPEDP), one of India's most respected organisations keeping vigil over the rights of the disabled. 

Nor is Abidi a first time victim to such indignity. His career as an advocate of the disabled's rights began after bearing insults by media companies who denied him opportunity.He is also just one among many such people who have been at the receiving end of Indian aviation sector's disgraceful attention.

Last year Jeeja Ghosh, a 43 year old woman with cerebral palsy, reached Kolkata to catch a Spice- Jet flight to Goa only to be offloaded from the plane for her condition. In May 2011, Kingfisher Airline deplaned a blind woman from a Mumbai-Goa flight.  And this year Tony Kurian, 22, a visually impaired student was denied tickets by Indigo.

The only constant in all these cases is not just the offence but the relative ease and indifference with which it is treated. And nothing short of stringent punishment is likely to rid the aviation sector of this insensitive attitude. Read more:  Daily Mail

Coverage in Times of India

21 March 2013, NEW DELHI: It was a 10 hour and 40 minute long flight from Tokyo to Delhi and JavedAbidi, the director of the National Centre for Promotion of Employment for Disabled People (NCPEDP) and a paraplegic, was looking forward to getting back home. However, Abidi had to wait an additional one hour inside the aircraft as the airline sent his wheelchair to the baggage pick-up area inside the terminal and had to have it retrieved.

"As an internationally established rule, if a disabled person is travelling with his or her wheelchair, it should be brought to the aircraft for the passenger to exit on that. I make it a practice to not only inform the airline at the departing station but also before we are to land that I will need my wheelchair. Despite taking all such precautions even this time, Air India sent my wheelchair to the conveyor belt and I was made to wait an hour for it," said Abidi.

Abidi had returned to Delhi from Tokyo on Wednesday evening on Air India flight AI-307 along with a companion and had been assured by the cabin crew before they landed that a message had been sent to the Delhi ground staff to ensure that his wheelchair was brought to the aircraft.

"For 30 minutes the crew tried to convince me to use their wheel chair. However, there is very little understanding that a wheelchair is not just any wheelchair. For instance, mine has been customized to suit my needs and body type. I would also be required to change chairs again had I used the airline's wheelchair. Anywhere else the airline could have been sued for this," said Abidi.

He also said that in clear violation of DGCA rules, the cleaning staff was permitted on the aircraft even as he and his companion were on board. Air India officials refused to comment on the issue.

Read at source: Times of India

Air India makes eldely persons to take stairs at Ahmedbad airport

Dear Colleagues,

Defying the DGCA's Civil Aviation Requirement on the carriage of persons with disabilties and persons with reduced mobiltiy by air, Air India continues to make persons with mobility challenges to take stairs and then climb on to high floor buses.

The video recording by our friend Dr. Piyush Ranjan Rout  from his hand held device at Ahmedabad airport  below explains how ill prepared and ill-trained are our airports to provide accessibility to those with reduced mobility :

The step ladders are not accessible for people with reduced mobility, however, several airlines continue to use them and the passengers keep suffering in silence. This is unethical and  uncalled for on the part of Air India and the aerodrome operator.

Indigo has set a wonderful example of ramped approach which is a viable option for the airlines to provide accessibility for persons with reduced mobility in  comparison to the costly ambulift. This atleast allows a person to be pushed manually by support staff rather than being lifted by four people risking the person's safety an dignity. However, if such a ramped access is not provided, ambulifts should be provided invariably.

Also the provision of high flour buses still continues at several airports which must stop immediately and low floor accessible buses must be provided in all such situations. Until then, an accessible van should be provided for persons with reduced mobility at all airports (including smaller airports in the states).

At major airports, effort should be to provide aerobridges so that such situations don't arise. However, at smaller airports accessibility must be given its due place to be compliant to the DGCA's CAR on carriage of persons with disabilities and persons with reduced mobility by air.

The DGCA should take an immediate action to put an end to such practices and instruct airlines to either provide ambulift and accessible transport at all airports or provide ramped acess to aircraft and accessible trasnport in absence of level aerobridges. This would be in line with the CAR mandate referred above.

Jet Airways leads by example- allows service dog with Child with Autism

Dear Colleagues,

In an unprecedented, but very right based move, the Jet Airways - an Indian Airliner, allowed a service dog for a passenger with autism. So far, people had only seen passengers with visual or orthoepedic disabilities allowed to travel with a guide dog/service animal.

I welcome this move and commend the team at Jet Airways for this great and pathbreaking initiative. However, the newsreport that appeared needs little correction. Simbaa - the labrador is not a pet (for there are different rules and also charges for the pets to be transported by air), but a service dog trained to assist his master ( a person with disability). Therefore,  allowing the service dog to travel with the master free of cost is within the ambit of the DGCA's CAR on carriage of persons with disabilities by air.  The airline deserves accolades for a correct interpretation of the CAR.

Also, the effort and perseverence of the family to insist for their legal rights and the cooperation of the Jet Airways is a wonderful example of how through an open dialogue, things can be sorted out amicably so beautifully.

Here is the news report from Times of India penned by Manju V.

Dog’s day out: Airline lets pet fly with autistic master

By Manju V, TNN | Mar 3, 2013, 04.58 AM IST

MUMBAI: When eight-year-old Jiyon Ganguly walked into Kolkata airport with his labrador Simbaa one January morning, the terminal paused in its steps. Passengers gawped and as Jiyon's mother Parama Bhattacharya and Simbaa stepped into a curtained enclosure for the pre-flight security check, the stunned woman security officer accidentally dropped her hand-held metal detector.

"She almost fainted. There was such a commotion. But Simbaa being the gentleman he is, stood calm through it all," Parama said.

After all, it was probably the first time in India that an autistic passenger was allowed to board a flight with his therapy dog. Most airline websites say only passengers with physical disabilities — those with a visual or hearing impairment — can board a flight with dogs trained to assist them. There's no mention of mental health assistance dogs.

In India, as in many countries abroad, only humans are permitted to fly in passenger cabins. Animals have to go cargo, except in cases where the animal in question is trained to assist a passenger with a disability. The general rule is clear: service dogs are allowed onboard flights. But most airlines interpret it to mean only persons with physical disabilities.

This is the grey zone that Jiyon, afflicted with Autism Spectrum Behavioural Disorder, and his therapy dog Simbaa, a nine-month-old labrador, navigated on January 12, when, after two weeks of negotiations, Jet Airways let them fly together.

It started with a traumatic train journey from Mumbai to Kolkata on December 23. Since dogs are allowed only in first class cabins on Indian Railways, the family booked themselves into one on Duronto Express. On board, Simbaa ate the pesticide meant for rats. Since the train did not have a halt, the labrador spent night and day vomiting. The dog settled after a visit to a veterinarian in Kolkata, but the family was jolted.

"I had checked airline websites and passengers with mental disabilities are not allowed to carry their therapy dogs on board. The only option was to send the dog into the cargo hold," Parama said. That was when she decided to speak to Jet Airways.

She got a negative response from the airline's reservation team in Kolkata. "They asked me what is autism, whether it is an abnormality, whether it is retardation. I explained and they said I should speak to their medical team in Mumbai. The Jet doctor said they had never done this before, but he asked me to get a medical certificate from Jiyon's doctor on his condition and the need for him to travel with the dog," Parama said, adding that his tone suggested there was little chance the dog would be allowed.

Parama said she persisted with the doctor and reasoned that if they could pay heed to passengers with physical needs, why not those with mental issues. The airline finally agreed to let the boy travel with his therapy dog. "It was probably the first time that any airline in India had allowed this. Jet took care of everything right from the time we entered the terminal building. It was the best flight Jiyon and I had ever taken," said Parama.

A Jet Airways spokesperson said that as a policy, they permit service dogs for disabled guests or those with special needs and there is no charge applicable.

Dr Harish Shetty, the psychiatrist treating Jiyon, said: "It's fantastic that an airline has recognized this disability and is compassionate. Therapy dogs have a calming influence on the patient. When flying, the child is in an environment that he is not used to, so having his dog on board helps greatly.'' The doctor said he had not come across any cases in the past when a patient with a mental disability was allowed to fly with his/her therapy dog.

News Source: Times of India

Now the disabled veterans could buy adapted cars through CSD

Ministry of Defence, government of India decides to provide adapted / modified cars through CSD (Canteen Stores Department) to disabled defence personnel.

Giving big relief to a large number of disabled defence personnel, the Ministry of Defence has decided to provide the automatic driven cars or cars which are suitably modified to meet their requirements through the CSD canteen stores. 

The move will enable them to procure the cars at subsidized rate which is much below the market price. 

Sources said that after the direction of the Ministry of Defence, the canteen stores department has written to all the major car manufacturing companies to send their proposals to the department for the enlistment.

The General Manager of the CSD stores has written to the Hyundai, Maruti, Ford , Toyata, Nisssan, General Motors etc for providing the detail of the cars useful for the disabled personnel. 

The letter has said, “Representation has been received from Disabled War Veterans for introduction of automatic driven cars. In order to meet social obligation stipulated under Disability Act all companies are requested to send their proposal.” The copy has also been sent to Col HN Honda president of the Association. 

Colonel ( Retired ) SK Agrawal disabled army officers has said that many cars are available in the market which are specially designed for the disabled personnel but the disabled persons cannot buy them due to their high prices. 

He said that if these cars are made available in the CSD stores then large number of the disable personnel can be benefited by the decision

There are large numbers of the disabled ex-servicemen residing in different parts of the county. 

Lt Colonel (Retd) SS Sohi, President Ex-Servicemen Grievance Cell said that the time has come to give their due to the war disabled. The move to provide the cars from the CSD will help them to live with dignity and pride. 

Companies are manufacturing cars for keeping in mind with different disabilities. Hand controlled cars are suitable for physically challenged people. Hand controls can make driving much easier with more control and faster response times. These cars have hand operated brake and accelerator and hand operated clutch.

Source: Daily Post India 

Ahmedabad BRT - a "Light House Project" - United Nation

NEW DELHI: The United Nations has chosen Ahmedabad's Bus Rapid Transit System (BRTS) as a showcase project to highlight that addressing climate change is not a burden, but an opportunity to improve the lives of people.

The 51-km BRTS will be highlighted as a 'lighthouse project' as part of the United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon's Momentum for Change Initiative at the Doha round of negotiations to be held later this month. The initiative was launched by the UN Secretary General at the 2011 Durban round of the UN-sponsored climate change negotiations. The "lighthouse projects" are an attempt to "transform the impression of slow progress in negotiations, into a positive can do environment that recognizes action and progress".

As people need to travel longer distances to work or for leisure, there has been a rapid rise in the vehicular traffic, especially as public transport systems in India's cities have been unable to cater to the rising demand. There is an annual 15% rise in the passenger-km that Indians travel, and a 10% increase in the sale of vehicles particularly cars to meet the requirement, according to official data. Transport has become one of the chief sources of rising emission.

Rising pollution, congested cities, larger imports of petroleum resulting in rising prices of petrol and diesel has prompted cities such as Ahmedabad to look for ways to address the crisis on the roads. The Ahmedabad BRTS, which began as pilot project on a 12.5 kilometre stretch in July 2009, has emerged as an example of how a planned commuting system can help reduce emissions and improve air quality as well as have a positive impact on urban development.

"The city of Ahmedabad, which flanks both banks of the Sabarmati river, has many bridges. About ten years ago, we had a pollution situation that made visibility poor. You just couldn't see the bridges. The pollution was so bad that if you were driving on the bridge or waiting at a red light your eyes would water. So around 2002-03, the city moved to CNG, which improved matters. The next step was to improve public transport," said Akhil Brambhatt, deputy general manager, Ahmedabad Janmarg Ltd.

The Ahmedabad BRTS or Janmarg is part of this effort. In the three years of its existence it has expanded to 51 km. Some 20% to 22% of commuters, who were using two-wheelers to commute, have moved to the bus system. The Janmarg's success comes even as Delhi's attempt at introducing a BRTS failed. Ahmedabad learnt its lesson from the nation's capital's mistake. "We took a lot of care in the route selection. Our slogan was simple-avoid busy roads but connect busy places," Brambhatt explained.

For the first three months, the Ahmedabad BRTS was run as a free service. People used the service out of curiosity and well because it was free. The doors were opened to suggestions, and many of these were incorporated into the working of the system. Even when it became a paid service, the charges were low. Brambhatt points out that the minimum fare of 3 for a 2-km trip is among the lowest in the country. The minimum fare in Delhi is 5.

Source: Times of India

UK's Civil Aviation Authority to handle air travel complaints of disabled passengers now

Dear Friends,

We find the world is gradually becoming inclusive for people with disabilities where the affairs of the disabled are not segregated to be dealt by exclusive commissions / ministries but integrated in to the mainstream network of handling consumer affairs. Transfer of handling air travel complaints from disabled persons from Equality and Human Rights Commission UK to their Civil Aviation Authority is one such good example which should be followed world over  not only to mainstream the disability issues but also to spread the sensitization about the disability in the larger community.

Here is an advice released by the UK's Civil Aviation Authority for the benefit of persons with disabilities and those with reduced mobility after the authority took over responsibility for handling air travel complaints from disabled people and those with reduced mobility from the Equality and Human Rights Commission.

Any passenger in the UK that faces difficulty travelling within an airport or on board an aircraft – through disability, injury, age or any other reason - is entitled to help from the airport or airline. The UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) is today reminding travellers of their rights and offering advice on what to do to improve their air travel experience.

Anyone who is unhappy with the service they receive when travelling should first contact the airport or airline they used, but if they don’t receive a satisfactory response the CAA can then take up the case on their behalf.

And to ensure the CAA delivers the best possible results for those that aren’t happy with the service they get from an airport or airline, it has set up the “Disability advisory group” - a forum where disability groups, consumer groups, the Department for Transport and the CAA can share data on the issues of most concern.

The rights of people with reduced mobility travelling by air apply across the EU and the CAA is responsible for enforcing them here in the UK. Its efforts focus on making sure airports and airlines meet their passengers’ needs and as part of this, the regulator is stressing to passengers the importance of informing their airport and airline of their needs at least 48 hours before they are due to travel. This can help improve the level of support passengers receive by allowing enough time for suitable preparations and additional facilities to be made available.

The rights for disabled passengers and persons with reduced mobility travelling by air are set out in EU regulation under 1107/2006 which is available at link: Rights of Disabled Passengers.  (9 page PDF document, link opens in a new window)

Iain Osborne, Group Director for Regulatory Policy at the CAA said: “Anyone who is able to fly safely should have fair access to air travel, and the right to any support they need to travel within the airport and board the aircraft. The obligations on airports and airlines to provide this support are very clear, and as we saw during the Paralympics, having everyone work together is the best way to ensure passengers get the service they deserve.

“However, there are still occasions where people do not receive the support they need and this can be very distressing for those passengers. By notifying their airport and airline of their needs in advance of their flight, passengers can help prevent this. And if they still don’t receive a good quality service, we want to hear from them so we can work with the airports and airlines to make sure it doesn’t happen again.”

Information and advice for passengers with reduced mobility is available from the CAA’s online passenger portal at www.caa.co.uk/passengers. The portal also includes other useful advice for passengers before they fly, whilst on board their flight and how to complain if something goes wrong.

Passengers who are not satisfied with the response from a complaint to an airport or airline can refer their complaint to passengercomplaints@caa.co.uk

regards

Subhash C Vashishth