I
happened to travel in the special compartment for disabled people , on a recent
trip from Tirunelveli to Trichy, as an escort for a relative of mine. I'm
writing this post to basically place a few observations on record.
The compartment was make-shift, a part of the coach having the Pantry was walled off on one end and marked as Special. The first thing that struck me as I entered was the roominess. The authorities had taken care to make the small area spacious , by not having the aisle seats. Just one cubicle was there with large seats, seating up to four people. There were two such seats, facing each other. So the place could house eight persons. There was a berth on top, where if need be, the escorts could move to, in case quite a few disabled persons happened to be there. But, on this trip the place was empty. Just two other persons with their respective escorts were there.
Initially, while boarding, I was shocked to notice, that although the compartment prominently displayed the sign "For Disabled" it had no special arrangement for people to board. I mean, one had to climb the same steep vertical steps (three of them) like any normal railway coach. It stumped me to think, how this was dis-abled friendly? What if a wheel-chair bound person happened to travel? Was he to be lifted up? Having said that, the interior was designed sensitively, there were railings in the coach walls so that they could be held by people while walking. The toilets were also large and spacious. One complaint I had was that the water outlet was hard to operate even for me, leave alone challenged people. The emergency-stop chain also was placed lower so that it will be easier to reach. Good thinking, that. India, is not the most disabled friendly of countries. Its record is miserable. So, considering that, it is quite a thing to see a well-designed Disabled compartment in India Railways. It will be even better if care were taken to incorporate further amenities, especially the one with the entering stairs.
The compartment was make-shift, a part of the coach having the Pantry was walled off on one end and marked as Special. The first thing that struck me as I entered was the roominess. The authorities had taken care to make the small area spacious , by not having the aisle seats. Just one cubicle was there with large seats, seating up to four people. There were two such seats, facing each other. So the place could house eight persons. There was a berth on top, where if need be, the escorts could move to, in case quite a few disabled persons happened to be there. But, on this trip the place was empty. Just two other persons with their respective escorts were there.
Initially, while boarding, I was shocked to notice, that although the compartment prominently displayed the sign "For Disabled" it had no special arrangement for people to board. I mean, one had to climb the same steep vertical steps (three of them) like any normal railway coach. It stumped me to think, how this was dis-abled friendly? What if a wheel-chair bound person happened to travel? Was he to be lifted up? Having said that, the interior was designed sensitively, there were railings in the coach walls so that they could be held by people while walking. The toilets were also large and spacious. One complaint I had was that the water outlet was hard to operate even for me, leave alone challenged people. The emergency-stop chain also was placed lower so that it will be easier to reach. Good thinking, that. India, is not the most disabled friendly of countries. Its record is miserable. So, considering that, it is quite a thing to see a well-designed Disabled compartment in India Railways. It will be even better if care were taken to incorporate further amenities, especially the one with the entering stairs.
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