No trains for the disabled

While a regular passenger might enjoy the thrill of jumping onto a crowded train just in time for departure, for a differently-abled person stuck on a wheelchair, boarding a train is anything but fun especially when travelling through Pakistan Railways, where absolutely no accessibility arrangements have been made to facilitate passengers with special mobility needs.

For instance, Babli Naseem, a 58-year-old polio patient on a wheelchair revealed that she was travelling to Rawalpindi to attend her niece's wedding. "Once I reached the platform, I realized that there were no special desks or ramps available for helping differently-abled persons like me. Hence, my brother and cousin had to lift me onto the train, which had no space for a wheelchair. The entire journey was extremely uncomfortable for me since there were no restrooms for people with disabilities either. It is the incompetence of the railway authorities that they have failed to consider the accessibility needs of differently-abled persons. Are people like us not a part of society?" she lamented

Similarly, Hafiz Qari Asif, another person with restricted mobility was en route to Multan with his wife through the Bahauddin Zakaria Express. "Since there were no special stairs or ramp to board the train compartment, we had to take the help of another passenger to get me onto the train. "There were no reserved seats for people with special needs. Although the government has discounted the fare for differently-abled persons, due to the lack of accessible facilities, they have to face severe difficulties," complained Asif.

According to Rana Asif, who leads an organization working for the special needs of people with disabilities, even though the government has issued identity cards to differently-abled persons alongside fixing a quota for them in government jobs, the community was still more or less marginalized by society.

"The accessibility needs of such people are not considered by institutions like Pakistan Railways, which has not bothered setting up a wheelchair ramp let alone a special counter. Hence, no person with a physical disability can even imagine travelling by themselves on a train," regretted Asif, who urged the government to pay serious attention to the issue.

Expanding on the same, Dr Nasreen Aslam Shah, Professor at the Department of Social Work, University of Karachi reiterated the fact that differently-abled persons were guaranteed the same rights as any other citizen. "Special people, whether they are disabled or blind, have a lot of trouble moving around. They have no special facilities in buses and trains.

The government should allocate one carriage for special persons and design it in such a way that all facilities are available for special persons. In this way, the problem of their transportation can be resolved to a great extent," suggested Dr Shah.

"It is true that special persons are not provided any facilities in the passenger trains of Pakistan Railways. Wheelchairs are available at major stations but usually at smaller stations this facility is also not available.

Between 100 to 150 differently-abled people travel through the passenger trains of Pakistan Railways on a daily basis. Therefore, trains should have special seats and restroom facilities for these people," said Railway Workers Union Chairman, Manzoor Razi.

On the other hand, officials from Pakistan Railways claimed that it is the task of the higher authority of the railways to determine the need for separate carriages for special persons.