PIL seeks wheelchair ramps, reserved seat numbers on Goa’s Kadamba buses

A public interest litigation before the Bombay High Court is seeking wheelchair-accessible ramps and specifically numbered reserved seats for persons with disabilities on Goa’s Kadamba Transport Corporation (KTC) buses, among other accessibility demands.

The petition, filed by 32-year-old Harish Parab and represented by Chirag Angle under legal aid, argues that seats for persons with disabilities are currently reserved on an arbitrary basis without designated seat numbers. It also seeks audible announcement systems in all KTC buses and at bus stands, and concessional travel rates for persons with benchmark disabilities even beyond Goa’s territorial limits.

Parab said the PIL followed an incident in which he was mistakenly dropped at the Goa Medical College bus stop instead of Goa University after the audible announcement system on his electric Kadamba bus was disabled.

On Wednesday, a division bench of Justices Valmiki Menezes and Hiten Venegavkar sought replies from KTC, the department of social welfare and other authorities, and indicated it may widen the PIL’s scope to examine standards under the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act and the Motor Vehicles Act.

The petition additionally seeks an independent authority to oversee infrastructural measures for persons with disabilities under the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016, in consultation with disabled persons and their organisations.