Standard Chartered Bank is joining hands with Anuprayaas and Samarthanam Trust to make 30 railway stations across India accessible for persons with disabilities under the Bank’s “Seeing is Believing” project.
The project aims to aid people who are blind or have low vision, people in wheelchairs, and people with hearing disabilities to travel independently by reducing their dependency on others while travelling.
The facilities which will be provided include:
- Guiding Braille indicators at platforms and railings to identify platform numbers and facilities.
- Braille General Signs for facilities like a male-female toilet.
- Reflective strips at stairs for people with low vision
- Braille Maps of the station
- Braille information booklets at the Enquiry counters
- QR code to watch the video about the station in sign language
- Portable ramp & wheelchair to board the disabled coach.
Thane station (Mumbai) will be the first to be ready, all facilities will be available at these 30 railway stations by 1 April 2022. The major railway stations covered under this project are Egmore Chennai, Bandra,
Ahmedabad, Bhopal, Mathura, Agra, Secunderabad, and Jaipur.
India is the second-most populous country globally and home to over 21 million persons with disabilities. Railway stations serve as a major commute medium for travellers with disabilities who travel throughout the country. Yet there is a lack accessibility in public places to assist persons with disabilities to travel independently.
“Making railway stations accessible for people with disabilities is a positive step in our journey towards being an inclusive organisation. We always strive to bring the Bank’s here for good brand promise to life by working towards real change, and this is one such programme. While there is still a long way to go, this project under our Seeing is Believing initiative reaffirms our commitment to increasing Accessibility and dismantling barriers for people with disabilities.’’ said Karuna Bhatia, Head of Sustainability, India, Standard Chartered Bank, said,
“Accessibility in public places is the basic requirement for ensuring inclusion and equality for people with disability in society. We thank Standard Chartered Bank for taking this initiative that supports dignity for people with disability and makes travel safe for them.” said Pancham Cajla, Founder Anuprayaas.
“We extend our thanks to Standard Chartered Bank for selecting us as an NGO partner to implement the initiative towards creating accessible Railway Stations for People with Disabilities in 30 Railway Stations across 16 States in India. This support will enable People with Disabilities to travel independently with safety, security, and dignity.” said Mahantesh G K, Founder Managing Trustee at Samarthanam Trust for the Disabled.
