News

Volume 9 Issue 2 - April 01, 2012

Ministry of Civil Aviation constitutes Committee to review C.A.R.

D.N.I.S. News Network, India: Following the March 12 meeting on the issue of violation of the rights of passengers with disabilities, Ministry of Civil Aviation (M.O.C.A.) has constituted a Committee on the ‘Rights of Passengers with Disabilities and Reduced Mobility’ under the Chairmanship of G. Asok Kumar, Joint Secretary, M.O.C.A. to look into the problems of persons with disabilities while travelling by air.

Puja Jindal, Director, M.O.C.A., will be the Convenor of the Committee, while R.N. Dhoke, Additional Commissioner of Security (Civil Aviation), Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (B.C.A.S.); Lalit Gupta, D.D.G., Directorate General of Civil Aviation (D.G.C.A.); S.C. Sharma, Executive Director, Operations, Airports Authority of India (A.A.I.) and Sekhar Borker, Board Member, National Trust will be members.

M.O.C.A. has also called upon Delhi International Airport Limited (D.I.A.L.), Air India, Jet Airways, Indigo and disability organisations to depute suitable members to the Committee.

The objectives before the Committee are to:

• Review the existing Civil Aviation Requirements (C.A.R.) on “Carriage of persons of disability and reduced mobility” by air.
• Study best practices in the world, latest United Nations/International Civil Aviation Organisation (I.C.A.O.) guidelines on the carriage of persons with disabilities.
• Suggest improvement of design of websites, accessories and facilities/infrastructure etc. specially meant to facilitate comfortable air travel for the persons of reduced mobility and disabilities.

The Committee has to submit its report within eight weeks from the date of constitution.

Disabled Rights Group (D.R.G.) has nominated renowned accessibility expert Shivani Gupta to this Committee, with Rajiv Rajan, disabled rights activist from Tamil Nadu, as her alternative.