July 7, 2019
Visually impaired trekker Amit KC filed a petition with the Supreme
Court after he was barred by the government of India from climbing Mount
Everest. The court has ruled in his favour and said visually impaired people
and double amputees must not be denied permission to trek mountains across
India.
No one can be denied the thrill and challenge of scaling the highest peaks.
This is the sum of a progressive ruling of the Supreme
Court, one that has come as a major boost for people with
disabilities.
The order comes in response to a petition challenging the government of
India’s move to bar visually impaired people and double amputees from
climbing mountains. India has many mountains and peaks that attract disabled
tourists from across the globe. The petition was filed by Amit
KC, a visually impaired trekker, who was denied permission in 2017.
Sajesh Krishnan, Kerala’s first blade runner is an
amputee, says the government has no right to interfere in individual choices.
When a person with a disability tries to do something, society has a
tendency to pull them back. A disabled person has to constantly hear that
they are unable to achieve something. This is what happened in the case of
petitioner Amit KC as well. I am glad that the Supreme Court has given him
a nod to go ahead with confidence. Every person has the right to do what
they want. But again, it is important to take precautions before trekking,
whether you are a disabled person or not. – Sajesh Krishnan, Blade
runner
It all started off when Amit decided to climb Mount Everest, the world’s
highest peak in 2017. He was stopped by authorities on grounds of disability.
This was a huge disappointment for Amit who had spent some time gathering
funds for the climb. Amit said the government was violating his fundamental
rights as a citizen, a view that Vysakh SR, an amputee
footballer shares.
“A disabled person can do anything. Last time, I went for trekking with a
few of my friends who are not disabled. While climbing up, they got tired and
had to sit down to take rest. But I wasn’t. How can someone tell us what we
can or cannot do?”, he asks.
There are hundreds of disabled people who have beaten their disability to
scale heights. Like visually impaired trekker Erik
Weihenmaye from the United States, Arunima Sinha
from India and Mark Inglis from New Zealand. This order of
the court will surely boost the confidence of even more aspiring trekkers.
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Source: https://newzhook.com/story/22751
