April 6, 2019
In a first, the Election Commission of India (ECI) is all
set to deploy Accessibility Observers (AO) for the upcoming
Lok Sabha elections. This is to ensure there is maximum participation by
people with disabilities in the voting process. The ECI has appointed
divisional commissioners as accessibility observers in most of the states
across India. If there are no divisional commissioners available, then
officers equivalent to the rank will be assigned the duty.
The ECI has been working on deploying accessibility observers since 2018.
These observers will work along with the general election officers and police
to ensure that disabled voters reach polling booths in large numbers. The ECI
has sent letters to chief electoral officers and chief secretaries in all the
states and union territories.
Prarthana Unkalkar Kaul, Co-Founder, GiftAbled, believes
appointing AOs is a great idea.
Krishna, an elderly man in our NGO has cerebral palsy and is a wheelchair
user. He has been participating in elections for the last many years
despite the difficulties in accessing the booths but there are many other
disabled people who are unable to do so. In Karnataka, NGOs like Mobility
India and Astha are working closely with the government to promote
inclusive elections so we hope more disabled people cast their votes this
time. It is our right and duty to do so. -Prarthana Unkalkar Kaul,
Co-Founder, GiftAbled
An AO will look into how well facilities are provided to people with
disabilities, including drinking water and disabled-friendly washrooms at
polling booths. These initiatives have been welcomed by disability rights
groups.
“The government has taken up many initiatives to make upcoming elections
accessible and inclusive and that’s great”, says Rajeev Palluruthy,
Secretary, All Kerala Wheelchair Rights Federation (AKWRF). “They
are even bringing bedridden people who do not have mobility to cast votes. We
have received letters from state officials requesting us to provide details
on number of wheelchairs that are needed along with other facilities.
Deploying accessibility officers is definitely going to be of great help to
many disabled voters. We have to wait and see how well this will be
implemented”.
This is the first time accessibility has been undertaken in such a massive
scale across India in the general elections and while things may go wrong, it
will offer useful lessons for the future.
ALSO READ: NGOs partner with government to make accessible election a reality
in Puducherry
Source: https://newzhook.com/story/21889
