Date:03/05/2009 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2009/05/03/stories/2009050358430100.htm
Front Page Breaking barriers in New Delhi Madhur Tankha Wheelchair users can now visit the Central Park without any inconvenience - Photo: Shanker Chakravarty NEW FRONTIERS: Construction of a dozen-odd ramps like this one here along the periphery of the Central Park in Connaught Place has opened up new vistas for wheelchair users in the Capital. NEW DELHI: Thanks to a small request from a physically-challenged woman and a prompt response by the New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) authorities, wheelchair users in the Capital can now visit the sprawling Central Park of Connaught Place without any inconvenience and enjoy its greenery and fountains like any other visitor. Neeru Gautam, a young wheelchair user, rang up the NDMC a week ago with a request to make Connaught Place and its Central Park more accessible for the differently-abled. "Being a physical-challenged person, I found it difficult to come from my home in West Patel Nagar to Connaught Place to enjoy an outing in the Central Park. I phoned up NDMC Junior Engineer Satbir Singh and Executive Engineer Nimesh, who promptly responded to my request. I am happy that the official machinery reacted positively and 14 ramps have been built on the inner circle including the Central Park," said Ms. Gautam enjoying her outing in the Central Park on Saturday evening. Recalling that she earlier encountered a lot of obstacles and barriers while coming to Connaught Place, Ms. Gautam said that more than the construction of ramps she is happy that the NDMC officials took immediate action on her phone call. "I also want to thank the Delhi Metro railway and the Municipal Corporation of Delhi. While entering the Shadipur metro rail station we used to face traffic problems. So the Delhi Metro has now allowed a backdoor entrance for physically-challenged persons like me. And the MCD has repaired roads so that we can move around in our wheelchairs smoothly," she said. Sanjeev Sachdeva of non-government organisation Sanjeevani India said although Neeru is working with him, she only requested the NDMC as a citizen. "Now disabled persons can shop, enjoy the fountain, hum songs or study at the coaching centre through word of mouth publicity. We are proud to say that Dilli Hamari Shaan Hai. But we want accessible public conveniences in the Central Park and other places in Connaught Place. Physically-challenged people also face parking problems here. We have requested the officials to make white marking in the parking area so that motorists or scooterists don't park their vehicles," said Mr. Sachdeva, who is a wheelchair user and was trained in accessibility options in Bangkok at the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for the Asia and the Pacific. Mr. Sachdeva has also appealed to the NDMC to introduce colour contrast on ramps for persons with low vision. "We also want construction of tactile tiles for visually impaired persons. At Rajiv Chowk and in Delhi Metro trains we want signages that are silent speakers for hearing impaired persons. We also want the officials to become more courteous. Security shouldn't be compromised and even persons like us should be manually frisked while entering public places." Satbir Singh of NDMC said more works would be carried out soon to further improve the access. "We have built 14 ramps in the inner circle and some inter-connected ramps will be repaired next week." To unsubscribe send a message to [email protected] with the subject unsubscribe. To change your subscription to digest mode or make any other changes, please visit the list home page at http://accessindia.org.in/mailman/listinfo/accessindia_accessindia.org.in
