CHENNAI: The Madras High Court recently wondered whether all government buildings in the State are accessible to disabled persons, and directed the State government to file a comprehensive report on how friendly public places are for the disabled.
Advocate M Karpagam filed a plea after a 24-year-old disabled person working at a government warehouse in Kancheepuram died after falling into an open septic tank at an under-construction house as the depot didn’t have a toilet.
She stated that government buildings must adhere to certain norms and upgrade their facilities for the disabled. In its interim orders, the court pointed out that there are Central government guidelines for all public buildings and government-owned buildings to follow such rules.
The first bench, comprising Chief Justice Sanjib Banerjee and Justice Senthilkumar Ramamoorthy, observed, “At any rate, whatever new infrastructure facilities are on the planning board or in the process of implementation, they should be modified to ensure that access to persons with disabilities and toilet facilities for them are incorporated.” The court also directed the State to file a report by June 14.