HOME	[ Search site: ] jump to navigational links

Communication > Campaign and materials

Professor Hawking’s visit shakes up access issue

The Archaeological Survey of India had to build ramps virtually overnight to accommodate Professor Stephen Hawking’s request to see some historical monuments.

Professor Stephen Hawking, one of the world’s leading theoretical physicists, was in India in January 2001. His visit, unexpectedly, centred the spotlight on the issue of accessibility in India.

Professor Hawking’s desire to visit the Red Fort, Qutub Minar, Humayun’s Tomb and the Jantar Mantar sent Indian offcialdom scuttling to save face. Since all these places are not disabled-friendly, the Archaeological Survey of India (A.S.I.) was pushed into making them accessible virtually overnight, something for which disabled people have been asking for a long time – with no results.

The issue of accessibility for the disabled attracted great media attention. The media exposed the gaps in the A.S.I.’s approach and thinking. N.C.P.E.D.P. put the requisite pressure; the A.S.I. and the Institute for the Physically Handicapped (under instructions from the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment) built temporary ramps at all the four monuments. The ASI also announced a policy to make all historic places, including heritage sites, disabled-friendly.

N.C.P.E.D.P. kept a watchful eye on these developments. Professor Hawking’s visit was followed by the organisation conducting Disability Audits of various monuments, such as the Taj Mahal in Agra, the City Palace in Jaipur and the Buddhist shrine at Sarnath.

People with different disabilities evaluated access from their point of view and carried out the audits. The results of the audits were then compiled and sent to the audited organisation for follow-up.

N.C.P.E.D.P. also conducted audits in Delhi; Crafts Museum, National Gallery of Modern Art, Pandara Road Market and Post Office, Central Post Office (Gole Dak Khana), State Emporia and Coffee Home, Sulabh toilet (at Safdarjung’s Tomb), McDonald’s (at Green Park), Chanakya Cinema and Indraprastha Apollo Hospital came under the microscope.

N.C.P.E.D.P. then tackled another question on access: Delhi University has been granting admission to disabled students since 2000. But how disabled-friendly are those hallowed portals of learning? To answer this, N.C.P.E.D.P. was given an assignment by H.T. Horizon to conduct an Access Audit of five Delhi University colleges and to rank them on the basis of their disabled-friendliness. The colleges finally audited were: Miranda House, Shri Ram College of Commerce, Gargi College, Hindu College and Sri Venkateswara College.

This spurred N.C.P.E.D.P. to launch a nation-wide campaign to conduct access audits all over the country, ably supported by its Partners in the States.

Printer-friendly version | E-mail this page to a friend

Main links in the Communication section: Campaigns | D.N.I.S. News Service |

Other links in the Communication section: F.A.Q.s | Links