MADURAI: The Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court directed the State government to devise a programme to make tourist destinations in Tamil Nadu accessible for Persons with Disabilities (PwDs) on Friday. A Bench of justices R Mahadevan and J Sathya Narayana Prasad observed that accessible tourism is vital for equal participation for PwDs in recreation and cultural life.
They added that the programme should be formulated in accordance with the standards of accessibility as prescribed under Section 40 of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016 and other applicable guidelines. Further, the bench directed the government to prepare and publish a travel guide of accessible tourist destinations.
The order was passed in a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed by KR Raja, who is a PwD residing in Madurai from 2018. He stated in his petition that his experience of being unable to access the Courtallam falls without crutches had prompted him to file the PIL. The government counsel also submitted that the government would take necessary steps to achieve the same.
Noting that the Tourism Ministry of the Government of India had issued a notification on June 15, 2022 relating to a draft version of accessible tourism guidelines for India and the State of Kerala has also come up with a successful initiative named ‘Barrier-free Kerala Tourism’, the judges directed the TN government to devise a programme, in consultation with expert bodies.