Karnataka High Court Seeks 'Positive Response' From State On PIL By Visually Impaired For Restoration Of Audio Announcements On Public Transport

The Karnataka High Court on Tuesday directed the State government to come out with a proper, positive and effective response to a PIL moved by a visually impaired person, seeking restoration of audio announcement service in State and Corporation buses and Metro railways.

A division bench of Chief Justice Prasanna B Varale and Justice Krishna S Dixit asked the State to ensure 'safe and comfortable commute' to the physically challenged and visually impaired persons, and has sought its response in the matter by November 9.

“There cannot be any dispute that this petition raises a very important issue and the respondent authorities cannot treat it as an adversarial litigation, but the petition needs to be responded by the respondents as social responsibility,” Court said.

It went on to quote a letter written by legal luminary Nani Palkhivala to another great legal luminary Soli Sorabjee on his appointment as Attorney General in the year 1989, “The greatest glory of the Attorney General isn’t to win cases for the government but to ensure that justice is done to the people.”

Shreyas argued that initially transport modes such as KSRTC, BMTC buses as well as metro lines had the facility of audio announcements, helping the visually impaired persons to know the stops or the destinations. He claims when he found the abrupt stoppage in this audio system, he shared his grievance with other visually impaired friends and volunteers and he discovered that his friends too werefacing this difficulty.

“That he himself and his friends or other volunteers are not asking for special treatment but only a facilitation so as to reach their destination as it is a common knowledge that there will be heavy rush of commuters in this mode of transport,” the plea states.

Shreyas also informed the court that most of the time conductors of buses help the physically challenged or visually impaired persons but if the buses are over crowded they are unable to pay more attention to them and this leads to causing difficulty to physically challenged or visually impaired persons, to reach the destination.

He pointed to the court that in neighbouring states like Maharashtra, Telangana and Andhra Pradesh, the facility of audio announcement is functional in all major modes of transport i.e. metro line and city buses and state transport corporation buses. Similarly, so far as private transport operators are concerned like OLA & Uber, the facility of Google maps is available with passenger and with driver of vehicles and with the coordination the passenger either seeks necessary information and exchanges it with driver or in case of difficulty seeks further assistance from driver and majority time such assistance is provided and there is smooth operation and functioning in assistance to passenger, visually impaired or physically challenged passengers.

The Court noted that the petition was filed in the year 2022 and notice was issued to respondents in August, directing them to file response within two weeks.

“We are sorry to state that though two weeks time was granted vide order dated 3-08-2022, no objection/response is filed to the petition by any respondents,” Court said after government advocates sought an adjournment.

“We will be happy if the state government comes out with some other suggestions and stands as a role model to other states,” Court said and adjourned the hearing.

Case Title: N Shreyas & ANR AND The Bangalore Metropolitan Transport Corporation & Others.

Case NO: WP 10744/2022