SHC wants ramps to be built for the disabled

The bench directs the chief secretary to refer the matter to the CM to enact a law

KARACHI: There is finally big news for thousands of the disabled people living in the province. The Sindh High Court (SHC) has directed the provincial government to introduce a law so that ramps can be built on the footpaths and the entry and exit points of other public places for the disabled, sick and elderly people.

The two judges directed the chief secretary to prepare a summary and refer the matter to the chief minister so that a law can be enacted. "It is expected that the chief minister [can] have the law prepared within three months," observed the bench while hearing a petition seeking facility of ramps for the disabled and elderly persons filed in 2012.

The court also directed the Karachi Metropolitan Corporation (KMC) and the Sindh Building Control Authority (SBCA) to instruct their departments to ensure the provision of ramps.

The neglected issue, as are the disabled persons, was brought to court when Agha Syed Ataullah Shah, the chairperson of NGO Rah-e-Rast Trust, took the authorities to the court for not constructing ramps on the footpaths and other public places for wheelchair users.

He said that the disabled, sick or elderly people who used wheelchairs could not move freely as there were no ramps on footpaths. Similarly, he added, they could not access markets, shopping centres, places of worship and educational institutions because of the same reason.

Shah said the authorities had failed to ensure that footpaths were constructed with a slope or ramp on each side and their height was below the established international standard, making it impossible for people using pushchairs, wheelchairs and push prams to move about independently.

The dearth of the facility has deprived these people of education, vocational training, counselling, and employment and the freedom to avail medical treatment on their own, increasing their dependency on others and halting the process of their social integration, argued the petitioner. He further submitted that these people were equal citizens but could not avail civic facilities they were entitled to in the absence of ramps.

He pleaded the court direct the civic agencies to build ramps on the sides of footpaths, at entry and exit points of other public places and alongside the stairs of every commercial and government building in the province.

KMC's assurance

During Tuesday's proceedings, the KMC authorities said it will be ensured that, in the future, the construction of ramps was incorporated while preparing the plans to build footpaths and other public places.

The judges observed that proper legislation is imperative to facilitate wheelchair users. Therefore, they directed the chief secretary to prepare a summary and refer the matter to the chief minister so that a law can be enacted.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 17^th, 2015.