Click to play videoChennai: Two months ago, Rajiv Rajan was not allowed to board an Air Sahara flight because he was a patient of cerebral palsy.
After a media frenzy, the company apologised to him. Now the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has introduced a new draft policy, which says people with severe impairment should be accompanied by someone. No wonder many are unhappy.
The new policy drafted by the DGCA is causing much heartburn. It says people with severe impairment of mobility will have to be accompanied by an escort. The man who brought the issue into focus is not pleased at all.
Rajiv Rajan says, “It's about my independence. I fly frequently and I can't keep asking people to drop everything and escort me. When I can fly on my own, why do I need an escort?”
That's not all. Another clause says airlines needn't take disabled passengers if they feel that it may pose a risk to the safety of others.
Another disabled person Meenakshi Balasubramaniam says, “They're talking about disabled people causing a threat to safety of other passengers. I don't understand how disabled people can harm anyone.”
What has angered the disabled community more is that they were not consulted at all while framing the policy.
“Saying they didn't ask us for our opinion. They've given only 20 days' time to comment on the website. They didn't even put out any ads in papers to let us know that they were calling for comments, “disabled person A Dhanasekar said.
Associations representing the disabled are now chalking out plans to register their protest effectively.
A lawsuit against the draft policy is also in the cards.
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