Urban centres give hopes and aspirations of a good life to people by providing better living conditions and access to advanced civic services. But odds are stacked against the specially-abled population in our cities. The built environment is not disabled-friendly in most of our cities. Making cities inclusive by including persons with disabilities in the agenda of urban planning and design is a must
Every year, we celebrate the World Disability Day on December 3, to make people aware about the difficulties people with disability face in going about their day-to-day lives and demand for better facilities in public places for them. There are over a billion people in the world with some kind of disability. The World Health Organisation (WHO) says that 15% of the world’s population lives with an impairment or disability.In India, according to Census 2011, there are over 21 million people with disability.
Traditionally, societies world over have supported them through special residential arrangements and special schools. These initiatives did provide them with some kind of facilities but actually secluded them instead of mainstreaming them. Persons with disability experience difficulties arising from their health conditions but if the society does not build a supportive ecosystem then they do not get adequate access to education, jobs and public facilities and remain stuck in the vicious cycle of deprivation and poverty. Cities will have to create an environment where the disabled population becomes self-dependent.
A majority of people with disability belong to the economically weaker sections of society. A report on disability by the World Bank says, across the world, people with disabilities have poorer health outcomes, lower education achievements, less economic participation and higher rates of poverty than people without disabilities. This is partly because people with disabilities experience barriers in accessing services that many of us take for granted, including health, education, employment, and transport as well as information. These difficulties are exacerbated in less advantaged communities because of having meagre resources.
For example, a poor person with a hearing disability will not be able to buy expensive hearing aid or any assistive technologic gadget. Many of them are not given equal opportunities in academic institutions and in jobs. They cannot even walk freely on footpaths because speeding vehicles on urban streets could hit them since cities failed to build disabled-friendly infrastructure.
The public transport system in our cities does not provide adequate facilities to specially-abled population. The lack of facilities increases the cost of living for a disabled person in a city because heor she either becomes dependent on a family member to take him/her around or has to use taxis or private vehicles.
When we travel by train and suddenly the railway announcer tells us about the change in the platform of our train, we run helter-skelter. Think about the person with a disability who will have to wade through the crowd to reach another platform using stairs or miss the train. In case of any emergency situation or accident, they become the most vulnerable. Such a pattern of public facilities follows them everywhere. Many of the government buildings and even corporation buildings are also not accessible to them in the absence of a simple ramp. One of the most talked-about government missions on cleanliness-Swachh Bharat Mission has talked about building toilets at public places. You can get toilets for the disabled at airports, cinema multiplexes and swanky malls but you will not get toilets for the disabled at railway stations, bus stops and other public places.
Cities have been built without thinking about how social, economic and physical barriers impact the lives of the disabled population. These social exclusions mean fewer opportunities for them. There is a need for them to be represented at meetings deciding policies and planning of cities. The initiative will surely enable us to think from their perspective and requirements. Cities need to rethink their planning pattern.
The new modes of transport like metro systems are designing their platforms to provide access to differently-abled. Such learning and a study on the experiences of disabled people while travelling in metro rail and other modes should be taken into account while planning of a public transit system elsewhere. Such initiatives would help in building more inclusive cities.
Disability-Inclusive and Accessible Urban Development Network with support from Changepeople.org published an illustrative charter to help cities become inclusive. Some of the points highlighted are; Allow people to move around the way they want to e.g. walking, biking, and wheelchairs; Reduce the use of cars and promote public transport; Design cities with all users in mind – all ages and abilities; Provide houses close to everyday destinations e.g. shops, schools, and workplaces; Provide public spaces and facilities that are safe and accessible to users of all ages and abilities e.g. libraries and sports centres; Make sure older and new buildings are made accessible and easy to evacuate in the event of an emergency; Make sure the planning process engages a wide range of people across generations, age, ethnicity, gender and disability; Provide information in multiple, easily accessible formats and languages. Cities need to go back and check how they perform on these criteria.
The United Nations General Assembly adopted its Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities on December 13, 2006. India is a signatory to the Convention that was ratified on October 1, 2007.
- respect for inherent dignity, individual autonomy including the freedom to make one’s own choices, and independence of persons;
- non-discrimination;
- full and effective participation and inclusion in society;
- respect for difference and acceptance of persons with disabilities as part of human diversity and humanity;
- equality of opportunity;
- accessibility;
- equality between men and women;
- respect for the evolving capacities of children with disabilities and respect for the right of children with disabilities to preserve their identities.
India has also introduced the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016 under which the rights and entitlements of the disabled population have been underlined. Responsibility has been cast upon the appropriate governments to take effective measures to ensure that the persons with disabilities enjoy their rights equally with others. Most of the local governments have not been able to do so. Only the introduction of an act will do no good unless strict compliance is ensured.
Salient features of Rights of Persons with Disabilities Bill – 2016
The Lok Sabha passed “The Rights of Persons with Disabilities Bill – 2016” on December 16, 2017. The Bill replaced the existing PwD Act, 1995, which was enacted 21 years back. According to the government, the New Act brought our law in line with the United National Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD), to which India is a signatory. This will fulfill the obligations on the part of India in terms of UNCRPD. Further, the new law will not only enhance the Rights and Entitlements of Divyangjan but also provide effective mechanism for ensuring their empowerment and true inclusion into the Society in a satisfactory manner.
- Disability has been defined based on an evolving and dynamic concept. The types of disabilities have been increased from existing 7 to 21 and the Central Government will have the power to add more types of disabilities.
- Speech and Language Disability and Specific Learning Disability have been added for the first time. Acid Attack Victims have been included. Dwarfism, muscular dystrophy have has been indicated as separate class of specified disability. The New categories of disabilities also included three blood disorders, Thalassemia, Hemophilia and Sickle Cell disease.
- Responsibility has been cast upon the appropriate governments to take effective measures to ensure that the persons with disabilities enjoy their rights equally with others.
- For strengthening the Prime Minister’s Accessible India Campaign, stress has been given to ensure accessibility in public buildings (both Government and private) in a prescribed time-frame.
- National and State Fund will be created to provide financial support to the persons with disabilities. The existing National Fund for Persons with Disabilities and the Trust Fund for Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities will be subsumed with the National Fund.
The Lok Sabha passed “The Rights of Persons with Disabilities Bill – 2016” on December 16, 2017. The Bill replaced the existing PwD Act, 1995, which was enacted 21 years back. According to the government, the New Act brought our law in line with the United National Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD), to which India is a signatory. This will fulfill the obligations on the part of India in terms of UNCRPD. Further, the new law will not only enhance the Rights and Entitlements of Divyangjan but also provide effective mechanism for ensuring their empowerment and true inclusion into the Society in a satisfactory manner.
Disability has been defined based on an evolving and dynamic concept. The types of disabilities have been increased from existing 7 to 21 and the Central Government will have the power to add more types of disabilities.
Speech and Language Disability and Specific Learning Disability have been added for the first time. Acid Attack Victims have been included. Dwarfism, muscular dystrophy have has been indicated as separate class of specified disability. The New categories of disabilities also included three blood disorders, Thalassemia, Hemophilia and Sickle Cell disease.
Responsibility has been cast upon the appropriate governments to take effective measures to ensure that the persons with disabilities enjoy their rights equally with others.
For strengthening the Prime Minister’s Accessible India Campaign, stress has been given to ensure accessibility in public buildings (both Government and private) in a prescribed time-frame.
National and State Fund will be created to provide financial support to the persons with disabilities. The existing National Fund for Persons with Disabilities and the Trust Fund for Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities will be subsumed with the National Fund.
Universal Design
Singapore may not yet be known as the best city for the differently-abled population but the city has started working to become inclusive for all by implementing ‘Universal Design’ in its built environment. Studies suggest that by 2030, 20 per cent of Singapore’s population will be over 60 and to cater to the needs of the ageing population, the city has to make its built environment accessible to all including senior citizens and specially-abled.
The Building Construction Authority has incorporated the concept of universal design, or “design for all,” into its mission to address the needs of people of all ages and abilities. With this goal, a key challenge was upgrading the large existing stock of buildings built before the 1990 Accessibility Code came into force. There was also a need to go beyond providing barrier-free accessibility within buildings and ensure that the surroundings of buildings are similarly barrier-free.
What is Universal Design” According to the Centre for Excellence in Universal Design (CEUD) of Ireland, which was established by the country’s National Disability Authority (NDA) in January 2007 under the Disability Act 2005, Universal Design places human diversity at the heart of the design process so that buildings and environments can be designed to meet the needs of all users. It, therefore, covers all persons regardless of their age or size and those who have any particular physical, sensory, mental health or intellectual ability or disability. It is about achieving good design so that people can access, use, and understand the environment to the greatest extent and in the most independent and natural manner possible, without the need for adaptations or specialized solutions.
In India, the government is initiating several new development plans and this is a right opportunity to make sure every new construction follows the principles of Universal Design or Barrier-free Design components for buildings, government offices, playgrounds, academic institutions, hospitals, recreational areas, public toilets, shopping complexes, etc.
Innovation for accessibility
Breda, a city in the Netherlands, won the 2019 Access City Awardfor continuously making improvements to make life easier for people with disabilities.This is not just the victory of a city authority but also of its people who have helped it make the city accessible to all. In a news report published in the British newspaper The Guardian about the accessibility in Breda City, Karel Dollekens, a civil servant working on accessibility in Breda, says he believes a willingness to collaborate is what won the award. “We have a wide network of university professionals, city staff and disabled people working together,” he says. “Sometimes we have heart-to-hearts, sometimes we get angry about the reality of projects and the limitations we face, but the conversation always continues. The network has now become a movement.” In the same article, he says, “People aren’t disabled, the environment they live in is.”
The local authority has focused on various components of the built environment to improve access for the disabled population. The local authority has visited public facilities, hotels and restaurants to check if they have adequate accessibility for all. Online research on accessibility for all in Breda shows that the city council also made their website fully accessible for all, including those with sensory impairments; accessibility improvements were made to another 25 websites that aid residents and tourists. Mastbosch, Breda’s forest, is fully wheelchair-accessible, and every two years the city hosts the Para Games, a large European sporting event for disabled people.
Social groups in the city along with local governments are now improving digital communication and resources to include those with sensory and learning impairments. According to the reports, the city council is introducing easy-read regulations for all documents and, if an organization wishes to run an event in the city, it now receives an accessibility checklist that must be complied with. The example of Breda, the small town with a population of a mere 200,000, is an inspiration for many cities in India and elsewhere. Our cities not only need to focus on bringing changes in policy, built environment and design but also attitudinal change in society where people are treated with dignity and get equal opportunity to grow and prosper.