Supreme Court Releases Report With Recommendations For Better Accessibility For Persons With Disabilities, Senior Citizens And Women

The Supreme Court Committee on Accessibility chaired by Justice S. Ravindra Bhat, on Monday released its Audit Report on the physical and functional access of the Supreme Court to persons with disabilities. The Committee that was set up by Chief Justice Chandrachud on 28th November 2022, released its report today (16.10.2023) making several recommendations geared towards removing barriers to access to the Supreme Court.

On the occasion of the release of the report, Justice Bhat said that it was a moment to celebrate since such an endeavour was the first of its kind. He thanked the members of the committee and various sub committees for the work put in by them. He said that report has tried to ascertain the views of the widest cross section of people. The audit pertains to both physical accessibility as well as accessibility to technology, he pointed out.

Chief Justice Chandrachud congratulated Justice Bhat and the committee for the comprehensive work undertaken by them. He said he was impressed that the committee had adopted a multifaceted approach incorporating a variety of research techniques to address accessibility issues methodically and comprehensively. The study of the committee included physical audits, operational evaluations and insights obtained through comprehensive questionnaires. The Committee conducted an assessment of the physical infrastructure of the Supreme Court including courtrooms, washrooms, drinking water facilities, bathrooms, canteens, registrar courts, administrative offices, common facilities and libraries, the CJI pointed out. The study had independent inputs from various stakeholders with a special focus on women.

The CJI said that the functional accessibility for persons with disabilities had been rigorously assessed by the committee. There was also a special focus on understanding and addressing the unique challenges faced by women in the Court including lawyers, litigants and staff, he pointed out. The report also focuses on senior citizens, recognising that  a significant number of advocates are senior citizens, he said. The Committee has also focussed on special court procedures for individuals who are HIV positive, he added.

A few of the recommendations of the Committee include:

1. Establishing route maps and signages

2. Developing pathways that are friendly to individuals with disabilities

3. Creating designated parking areas with monitoring for persons with disabilities.

4. Enhancing accessibility to utilities like washrooms, water units, canteens and ATMs

5. Introduction of features like battery operated vehicles, hydraulic lifts in court rooms and auditoriums and reservation of seats for pregnant women, persons with disabilities and senior citizens

6. Providing accessible tools like sign language interpretation and documents for visually impaired individuals and stakeholders with disabilities

7. Conducting sensitisation sessions and ensuring dedicated service windows, online pages and human assistance for persons with disabilities and senior citizens

8. Establishing a special accessibility and inclusion section within the registry of the Supreme Court

9. Introduction of specialised facilities such a feeding and changing rooms

10. Implementation of an equal opportunity policy for the Supreme Court

The Chief Justice also said that the report would be a useful guide to High Courts in evaluating the physical and functional accessibility within their premises as well.

The Chief Justice said that the findings of the audit report would be made available in the public domain shortly.