June 29, 2019
One of the major barriers that come in the way of disabled children
attending school is the lack of wheelchair accessible transport. For the
first time in Goa, a school in the state capital has access to a wheelchair
accessible bus service, which was inaugurated by the chief minister. This
will hopefully set the trend for other schools.
Students of the Sanjay Centre for Special Education in
Panjim can now look forward to a comfortable ride to school. This is thanks
to the introduction of a wheelchair accessible bus launched this week by
Goa Chief Minister, Dr Pramod Sawant.
The modified bus can accommodate seven wheelchairs and a lift has been added
with the help of Ezy Mov, the well known wheelchair taxi
service. Another partner in this initiative is the Rotary Club of
Panaji Mid-Town.
The Goa government has asked other schools for children with disabilities in
the state to start this service. A fund has been set up to facilitate this.
All the schools have to do is apply for the funding. Activists say this is a
welcome move.
I think it is a great initiative and should definitely be extended to all
the schools across Goa. The bus will definitely change the way disabled
students travel to school. The RPWD Act also talks about making school
transport vehicles accessible for the disabled students. – Avelino
Dsa, President, Disability Rights Association of Goa
However for true inclusion to happen, this must be mandated for all schools
and not just the 30 odd schools for children with disabilities. The RPWD Act
specifically talks about ways to make inclusion happen at all levels. This
way disabled students will be able to study at any school in the state.
Vishant Nagvekar, a Goa-based activist, hopes this feature
will be extended to public transport as well.
“Right now one such bus has been launched and it is a great development. I
hope this will be done for all the disabled students in Goa. It would make
such a huge difference in the life of people with disabilities if the public
transport buses were also made accessible”.
Source: https://newzhook.com/story/22674
