Supreme Court bats for training, sensitisation of Airport staff to assist disabled passengers

The Supreme Court on Tuesday directed airport authorities to provide comprehensive training to their staff on sensitivity and support towards passengers with disability [Arushi Singh vs Union of India].

A division bench of Justice JB Pardiwala and Justice Pankaj Mithal emphasized the need for airport personnel to be equipped with the necessary skills and knowledge to assist physically disabled passengers with dignity and compassion.

In this regard, the Court batted for necessary training of airport staff falling under category B, which should include training to successfully assist the physically disabled people in any issues they face.

"We dispose of the writ petition in the aforesaid terms laying more stress on sensitising the staff at the airport to be more compassionate towards physically disabled passengers. For the staff falling under category B, necessary training should be imparted during intervals. The training classes should involve training successfully assisting the physically disabled people in any issues they face. With the aforesaid observations, the present petition is disposed of," the Court said.

In its order, the Court also adopted the proposed guidelines jointly formulated by Solicitor General Tushar Mehta and Additional Solicitor General Aishwarya Bhati to ensure assimilation of disabled persons into the society.

The Court informed that guidelines will be made available in the detailed order.

It further stated that the mandatory guidelines issued will not be limited only to wheelchair users i.e., persons with disability, but shall be extended to elder people also who may need wheelchair facility at the airport.

"The guidelines stated should not be construed to means that physical assistance provided at airport (to such disabled individuals) is withdrawn. These guidelines are in addition to already provided assistance," the Court clarified.

The Court was hearing a plea by one Arushi Singh, who is suffering with a lifelong disability of 75 per cent in her legs.

In her plea, she had alleged harassment at the Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport in Kolkata as she was asked thrice to stand up during the security check process despite her disability.

"The airport authorities no one helped her at the kiosk. She was asked multiple times to stand even though she couldn't. She had to wheel herself out. No assistance. Only males are there to aid in such cases," the petitioner argued.

Arushi has been flying between Kolkata and Delhi every three to four months for the last one and half years on work-related trips. On the date of the incident, her flight to Delhi was scheduled for 7.30 PM.

Before entering the terminal building, she had to wait in her personal wheelchair for around 20 minutes as there was no assistant to shift her to the one provided by the airline.

She later tweeted about the treatment meted out to her before eventually moving the top court.

[Live Courtroom Exchange]