MADURAI: Ramps, handrails, tactile pathways, and braille signage -- basic accessibility features designed to remove barriers for people with physical, sensory, and cognitive disabilities -- are completely lacking or inadequate at several government offices and public facilities in the city, including the collectorate, corporation office, and bus stands, posing an everyday challenge for persons with disabilities (PwDs) to individually navigate the public spaces.
A person with visual impairments told TNIE that it is difficult for her to step outside of the house to get anything. "Kalaignar Centenary Library is one of the few public buildings that has proper facilities like tactile tiles and Braille pathways," she said.
Renuga, a person with disability, claimed that the PwD toilets at the Mattuthavani Bus Stand are often kept locked. "There are also no such facilities at the Race Course ground, Aavin Head Office, and Slum Clearance Board offices," she said. The Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016, mandates that all public and private places be made accessible, she said, urging the district administration to take a special initiative to conduct inspections and ensure that accessibility measures are in place.
M Srikanth, president of TARATDAC's visually challenged special committee, said that people with visual impairments are the ones mostly ignored in government offices, as facilities such as braille signage, tactile pathways, and reflective stickers are nonexistent at government office buildings, especially the collectorate and the corporation.
The Tamil Nadu Association for the Rights of All Types of Differently-abled and Caregivers (TARATDAC) district secretary A Balamurugan told TNIE that most of the government offices in the city remain inaccessible, despite repeated petitions by the association to Collector K J Praveen Kumar and former collector M S Sangeetha. He pointed out that even the collectorate building has just one ramp at the entrance, with no handrails or proper access to several departments, including the office of the Differently Abled Welfare Department. "The ramp at the Periyar Bus Stand is extremely narrow. The ramps at the corporation office are too steep, and only one wheelchair, with worn-out wheels, is available on the premises," he said.
Responding to the issue, District Differently Abled Welfare Officer N Saminathan said the collectorate building, constructed five years ago, does not have Braille pathways. "However, ramps and PwD-friendly toilets are available. We will look into ensuring additional facilities for easy access for all categories of persons with disabilities," he said.