Bihar social welfare dept seeks differently-abled friendly highways, underpasses

Office of the persons with disabilities in Bihar’s social welfare department has written to the state government and the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) to create facilities for the specially-abled on all the state and national highways passing through, said a senior official.

“It’s an effort to draw the attention of the government towards the problems and difficulties faced by people with disabilities while moving from one place to another,” said disabilities commissioner Shivajee Kumar on Sunday.

The department has asked for equipping zebra crossings with audio signals and sound system for the visually impaired, signage in Braille script, special light system for the deaf and mute people while requesting that the underpasses at all the highways are made ‘Divyaang’ friendly.

“Though we want the physically challenged to be independent, we fail to realise the basic problems they face while travelling. Most of the state and national highways have zebra crossings but they are unsafe for visually impaired,” he said, adding that the department has written to the NHAI, municipal corporations and road construction department along with the state government in this regard.

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“Even deaf and mute people need special facilities for safe movement since they cannot hear the horns, there should be special light arrangements for them,” he added.

“For persons with special ability, especially wheelchair bound ‘Divyaangs’, using the underpass is difficult as well as dangerous. Even normal people do not find most of the underpasses smooth and convenient,” he said.

Things have to improve to make ‘divyaangs’ self-reliant, he said and added that the NHAI had responded with the assurance to develop facilities for the physically challenged, he said.