Millions hopped merrily from one pandal to another across the city
this puja, but a few spared a thought for people with disabilities. Less
than 5% of the big pujas had the basic arrangements for such visitors.
Majority of the big draws didn't care to arrange anything more than
just a wheelchair, which, at many places, was not even functional. A few
had ramps or an adequate number of volunteers to assist the disabled,
according to a survey by Civilian Welfare Foundation (CWF), an NGO.
Conducted at pandals that had an average footfall of 4 lakh or more per
day, the survey observed that several pujas, which won awards, were
guilty of ignoring people with disabilities. Star attractions such as
Ekdalia Evergreen, Mohammed Ali Park, College Square and Santosh Mitra
Square had no wheelchair. Vivekananda Athletic and Ajeya Sanghati, on
the other hand, had broken wheelchairs. None of the top bracket pujas
had ramps for wheelchairs. Instead, they had stairs that were extremely
risky for disabled visitors, the survey observed.
"Kolkata pujas are unfriendly towards disabled persons. Even if they are accompanied by their family members, it would be virtually impossible for them to get inside a pandal. Without a wheelchair and help from volunteers, it could be risky. Even pandals which had wheelchairs, didn't have them near the entrance. None had a ramp to roll the chairs which made them redundant. Thousands of disabled visitors returned from pandals as a result. They couldn't even go near the pandals," said Shuvojit Moulik, president of CWF.
An access audit like this one, according to Moulik, also includes things such as the distance of parking zones from the entrance and obstacles on the pathway but they were excluded since no puja stuck to the basic requirements.
The only wheelchair at Vivekanada Athletic lay at a corner, away from the main entrance and there was no volunteer to fetch it. The pandal at Mohammed Ali Park, which had no wheelchair, had a long flight of stairs without any volunteer to help the disabled climb them. Ekdalia Evergeen didn't even have a first-aid box. Singhi Park, too, went without a wheelchair or a separate gateway for disabled persons.
Yet others had arrangements which were inadequate, the survey observed. Badamtala Ashar Sangha, for instance, had a separate entrance for disabled people but didn't have a wheelchair. Mudiali Club had a ramp but no wheelchair. Chetla Agrani Sangha had a ramp and volunteers to operate them, but their wheelchair was not in good shape. Maddox Square had ramps but no wheelchair or volunteers.
"It is difficult to change things unless the government lays down a few basic mandatory rules for puja organizers. There should be incentives for organizers, like awards, for the best arranngements for the disabled. Unless these are done, they will continue to be deprived of the right to enjoy the pujas," said Moulik.
But, despite the overall gloomy picture, things have improved marginally, observed Moulik. "There were a few exceptions such as Suruchi Sangha in New Alipore that had ramps, wheelchairs and a separate entrance for disabled persons. Some small, obscure pujas, too, had proper arrangements," he said.
National Institute of Professionals, another NGO that has been campaigning for 'friendlier' arrangements at pandals, agreed. Secretary Debajyoti Ray pointed out that several pujas on the northern fringes of the city had better arrangements for the disabled.
Source : TOI , 22nd October 2013
"Kolkata pujas are unfriendly towards disabled persons. Even if they are accompanied by their family members, it would be virtually impossible for them to get inside a pandal. Without a wheelchair and help from volunteers, it could be risky. Even pandals which had wheelchairs, didn't have them near the entrance. None had a ramp to roll the chairs which made them redundant. Thousands of disabled visitors returned from pandals as a result. They couldn't even go near the pandals," said Shuvojit Moulik, president of CWF.
An access audit like this one, according to Moulik, also includes things such as the distance of parking zones from the entrance and obstacles on the pathway but they were excluded since no puja stuck to the basic requirements.
The only wheelchair at Vivekanada Athletic lay at a corner, away from the main entrance and there was no volunteer to fetch it. The pandal at Mohammed Ali Park, which had no wheelchair, had a long flight of stairs without any volunteer to help the disabled climb them. Ekdalia Evergeen didn't even have a first-aid box. Singhi Park, too, went without a wheelchair or a separate gateway for disabled persons.
Yet others had arrangements which were inadequate, the survey observed. Badamtala Ashar Sangha, for instance, had a separate entrance for disabled people but didn't have a wheelchair. Mudiali Club had a ramp but no wheelchair. Chetla Agrani Sangha had a ramp and volunteers to operate them, but their wheelchair was not in good shape. Maddox Square had ramps but no wheelchair or volunteers.
"It is difficult to change things unless the government lays down a few basic mandatory rules for puja organizers. There should be incentives for organizers, like awards, for the best arranngements for the disabled. Unless these are done, they will continue to be deprived of the right to enjoy the pujas," said Moulik.
But, despite the overall gloomy picture, things have improved marginally, observed Moulik. "There were a few exceptions such as Suruchi Sangha in New Alipore that had ramps, wheelchairs and a separate entrance for disabled persons. Some small, obscure pujas, too, had proper arrangements," he said.
National Institute of Professionals, another NGO that has been campaigning for 'friendlier' arrangements at pandals, agreed. Secretary Debajyoti Ray pointed out that several pujas on the northern fringes of the city had better arrangements for the disabled.
Source : TOI , 22nd October 2013
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