TEAM HERALD
PANJIM: Disability Rights Association of Goa has cautioned the government to make all government buildings and offices accessible to persons with disability by March 31, 2015, failing which the NGO would file contempt of court proceedings against the state government at the Panjim Bench of the High Court of Bombay.
DRAG president Avelino De Sa said, “The state government had assured the Panjim bench of the High Court of Bombay to make all public buildings accessible by 2008.”
DRAG had written to the district magistrate (north) and state disability commissioner demanding a ban on programmes held in the Menezes Braganza Institute hall failing which it will hold a protest at every function being held at that place as it is not accessible to persons with disability and the elderly and sufficient time has been given to Institute Menezes Braganza to make their premises accessible for persons with disability and the elderly.
Speaking at the protest De Sa demanded that the government stop treating persons with disability and the elderly like outcastes. “Section 46 of the persons with Disability Act 1995 and Article 9 of the UN convention on the rights of persons with disability mandates that all public buildings should be accessible to persons with disability including wheel chair users,” he said.
In January 2014, the secretary social welfare had issued a circular to all government departments to make their premises accessible to persons with disability and to hold programmes in disabled friendly premises, failing which it will be a punishable offence under the persons with disability act. Despite these laws and directives, public buildings and government offices are still not accessible to persons with disability in the state till date. Today persons with disability are educated, employed, contributing to society and have a right to full participation in society but they are not able to do so in view of inaccessible buildings.
DRAG has also written to Governor Mridula Sinha and Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar and all the MLAs requesting them not to inaugurate functions held in places which are not accessible to persons with disability and the elderly, as a mark of their commitment to the rights of persons with disability in Goa. Goa has 33,002 persons with disability as per Census 2011.
