Access Audits

February 24, 2018

Svayam Founder featured on AXSChat

Dear Colleagues,

#AXSChat is an open online community of individuals on Twitter, dedicated to creating an inclusive world who believe that accessibility is for everyone. Every week, #AXSChat features a different guest who is contributing to making the world a more inclusive place through technology or innovating to enable wider participation in society for people with disabilities.

In this series, on 24 February 2018, our Founder-Chairperson Ms. Sminu Jindal was invited by AXSChat team for an online interview. The live interview conducted by Mr. Neil Milliken (England), Mr. Antonio Santos (Ireland) and Ms. Debra Ruh (United States) focused on a number of issues around accessibility, sustainability, ICT, Smart Cities and Svayam’s contribution towards an inclusive world.

Ms. Jindal spoke at length on importance of raising awareness about accessibility and how it benefits everyone and not merely the persons with disabilities. She highlighted the grey areas in transport sector especially the aviation sector where long haul flights still did not consider accessible toilets as a necessity and why the stakeholders across the world continue to suffer in silence without making a hue and cry about it! She emphasized that on-board accessible toilet isn’t a luxury but a basic human right for persons with reduced mobility!

She also said that youth need to be sensitized as they can become change makers for a more sustainable and accessible world. Ms. Jindal emphasized on the importance of accessible toilet at every school in rural areas, so that the people still not exposed to the benefits of the accessibility are able to experience the benefits and be inspired to make their own toilets accessible. This would also enable the persons with reduced mobility such as older adults to contribute to national building.

Watch the full interview here and continue to support #Accessibility4All

October 15, 2017August 21, 2018

October 2017: BULMIM students complete their internship at Svayam

To raise awareness about Universal Design and Accessibility in the young minds so that they become more receptive to the diversity and inclusion in their lives and career, Svayam provides internship opportunities for graduate and post graduate students of various streams.

In this series, final year students of PGDM program of the Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan’s Usha & Lakshmi Mittal Institute of Management (BULMIM), New Delhi underwent their internship during 25 September 2017 to 14 October 2017.

Group Photo of students at Gargi Sarvodaya Kanya Vidyalaya, Green Park, New Delhi, — Site visit of students to Gargi Sarvodaya Kanya Vidyalaya, Green Park, New Delhi,

As part of the internship, a batch of 16 students attended sensitization and awareness workshops on disability equality, accessibility and universal design, and were exposed to the process of conducting access audits of built environment (Govt Schools & Pedestrian infrastructure) from the perspectives of its usability by persons with reduced mobility and making presentations of audit reports of the sites visited.

Ms. Sminu Jindal, Founder Svayam, handing over Internship Certificates to Interns

Upon completion of their three-week long internship, Ms. Sminu Jindal Founder and Chairperson, Svayam, handed over the Internship Certificates to them on 12 October 2017.

Sharing their experiences about how their attitude has changed, a student said that he never looked at the built environment from this perspective. Now he will go back to his city as a changed man and will sincerely attempt to make his town accessible and spread the message of inclusion, accessibility and universal design. Similar ethos echoed with every student.

Ms. Sminu Jindal motivated them to work for accessibility and said, “Accessibility helps everyone, and not just the disabled. An elderly person can independently step out and do their daily chores without depending on other people. Accessibility ensures that they live, and not just breathe.”

“Wherever you go, whatever you do in life, add your efforts to make your surroundings accessible, and change the attitude of those who come across you,” she exhorted the students, and wished them good luck in their future endeavours.

January 11, 2017

Aiming for an accessible future: Navhind Times features Ms. Sminu Jindal

NT, January 11, 2017 in Buzz
SHERAS FERNANDES| NT BUZZ

Question 1: You are now one of India’s leading business leaders, promoting equal accessibility rights movement in India. Tell us something about your journey.

Answer: I was a young child when I met with an accident and the world changed for me which kept me wondering how people lived life. As I grew older I realised that there are many who will benefit with accessible infrastructure. Accessibility enables one with smoother ways to move from one place to another. The idea is to do it safely for all women, children and elderly people to benefit with better ways and routes. People don’t understand how accessibility can affect people who are on the wheelchair. The whole idea is nature has made challenges around us and people are there to help us to overcome them. Human beings should ensure that infrastructure is accessible to live a normal life.

Question 2: Can you throw some light on the current scenario of the lives of people with reduced mobility in India and Goa in particular?

Answer: According to what I have observed in the past few years I have realised that people with reduced mobility in Goa don’t like to go out of their houses, whether it is their choice or the situation. Since Goan culture is about susegad it could be out of choice that people chill. Quoting census 2011, out of 1.5 million people in Goa almost 1 lakh people are directly impacted by accessibility at any given time (including the ones who are temporarily disabled due to accidents and falls).

Question 3: According to you how can accessibility for those with reduced mobility benefit both tourism and economy, especially in a state like Goa?

Answer: We as Indians miss out on a huge amount of opportunities. In terms of economic gain we have not thought if what will happen if we have accessible restaurant. It is to think a little beyond and make it a little bit different.

Question 4: The general debate is that ‘Accessibility is not just about disability’ can you please explain this statement?

Answer: Move around Goa and you will see how accessible or inaccessible Goa is. Do we have accessible ways for a baby in a pram or an old man with a walker? We must have civic sense and be sensitised about the issue of people with reduced mobility. If accessibility is brought into implementation, somewhere down the line when we become older we too will be at an advantage, as we will not have to rely on anyone. Accessibility is not a disability topic it is a developmental topic as it benefits everyone in the society.

Question 5: What are your plans in improving the accessibility scenario in India? Do you have any specific plans for Goa?

Answer: I believe that Goa is a law abiding state and it is a state that wholeheartedly welcomes people from different walks of life. If a few things are kept in mind it will benefit the society as a whole. Three main things are the, size of a ramp, size of the door which should be at least three feet wide and an accessible bathroom – there are clear cut designs available and Svayam website offers them for free. If these three things are kept in mind, from a 100 per cent difficulty, life becomes only 20 per cent difficult for people and particularly for people with reduced mobility. The rest 20 per cent difficulty is transport. If transport is made accessible people with reduced mobility have their ‘me’ time and do not have to rely on anyone. Buses, pathways and proper curb cuts are essentials that will further reduce the difficulties for a person with reduced mobility. There are few things which are complicated but if you understand them you can make roads accessible.

Question 6: Did you encounter any incident in life that made you believe that equal accessibility is not just important, but should also be a right for everyone?

Answer: I encounter so many incidents in different aspects of my day to day life. When I stay in a hotel there is only one accessible room which is not always what one desires. When we talk about a chilled way of life how can we live when someone else around us is in pain. For me sometimes the stairs of a church or temple is like Mount Everest. When God has given a problem why can’t other people help one another to find a solution. Give people the means of livelihood through accessibility. You should give somebody a gift that he remembers for life and accessibility can make a good gift.

Question 7: How has Svayam helped in breaking barriers and making necessities like education and healthcare accessible for people irrespective of their age and physical ability?

Answer: In a country like India people must understand the problems of those with reduced mobility and the need for accessibility for the benefit of the society. So my constant struggle is to talk to people and higher authorities like the education, health or tourism minister to make them aware on the need for accessibility. We are doing it at a central level (Delhi). Whenever I travel, I make it a point that I speak to people about accessibility; I have a greater hope of accessibility coming to Goa soon.

Source: Navhindtimes

August 12, 2015

GOI seeks partnership with Corporate sector for Accessible India Campaign

Government of India reaches out to the Corporate Sector seeking partnership in realising the dream of #AccessibleIndia. The corporates can take up a public buildings & spaces. The mobile app to give wings to this programme is likely to be launched towards the end of August 2015.

Here is the coverage in Economic Times:

Accessible India: Let’s make public buildings disabled friendly says government to India Inc
By NIDHI SHARMA, ET Bureau | 8 Aug, 2015, 04.00AM IST

NEW DELHI: Adopt a public building and make it disabled-friendly – this is what the government is telling companies. As part of its Sugamya Bharat or Accessible India initiative, the Centre is roping in big corporates and asking them to take up a school, hospital, park, mall or other public building in their city for this purpose.

The initiative will begin with the identification of public places that are inaccessible to the differently abled and need minor structural changes, including ramps for wheelchairs or tactile strips and braille signage for the visually challenged. The department of disability affairs in the ministry of social justice and empowerment is developing a mobile app in connection with this initiative. Using this, anyone can take a photograph of a public building and upload it, flagging how it’s not disabled friendly.

The department of disability affairs will draw up a list of buildings that need to be upgraded and send it to the states.

“The ministry or the states would not have the funds to make all these corrections,” a senior ministry official told ET. “But corporate players and private firms would have money under their corporate social responsibility schemes to undertake such initiatives.”

Even before the launch of the mobile app or the initiative, the disability division has started getting queries from the corporate sector. “A Bangalore-based firm has asked us how can they be of some help in this initiative,” the official said.

“A few other queries have come. As we formally launch the programme by the end of this month, we are confident the corporate players would come forward and adopt public buildings.”

Source: Economic Times

June 18, 2015

Govt. of India invites ideas/ proposals to conduct Access Audits 100 Most frequented Govt. Buildings

Dear Colleagues,

Under Accessible India Campaign, the Government of India wants you to express your choice of a Govt. building that is most frequented by public. The exercise is to identify 100 such Govt. buildings in your cities and then to take up the access improvement work in fast track to make them completely accessible within a time bound manner.

To give you a background, the Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities (DEPwD), Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment had launched the “Accessible India Campaign (Sugamya Bharat Abhiyan)” as a nation-wide flagship campaign for achieving universal accessibility that will enable persons with disabilities to gain access for equal opportunity and live independently and participate fully in all aspects of life in an inclusive society. The campaign targets at enhancing the accessibility of built environment, transport system and Information & communication eco-System.

The campaign would initially be implemented on pilot basis in seven States, which include Delhi, Assam, Gujarat, Haryana, Maharashtra, Rajasthan and Tamil Nadu. A strategy paper of the nation-wide Accessible India Campaign with details of the campaign along with objectives, targets and deadlines has been prepared.

To access the strategy paper click here: Strategy Paper- Accessible India Campaign

One of the targets under the objective of enhancing the proportion of accessible government buildings is to conduct accessibility audit of 100 most important government buildings and converting them into fully accessible buildings by July, 2016 in the following cities:

(a) Delhi

(b) Ahmedabad

(d) Gurgaon

(e) Guwahati

(f) Jaipur

(g) Mumbai

DEPwD invites suggestions/ideas/proposals from individuals/NGOs/ Associations / Civic bodies to identify 100 pubic (government) buildings frequently used by persons with disabilities in the above cities to be converted into fully accessible buildings, which will make the greatest impact on achieving a barrier-free environment that allows free & safe movement, function and access for all, without obstacles, with dignity and with as much independence as possible.

Details of such identified prominent government buildings in the above cities that you want converted into fully accessible buildings may be sent to the Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities, by e-mail at accessibleindiacampaign@gmail.com as early as possibel or by end of June 2015.

You may also post the photos etc of inaccessible buildings on our facebook page https://www.facebook.com/svayam.india

June 15, 2015

Register for 14th International Conference on Mobility & Transport for Elderly and Disabled Persons (TRANSED 2015) at Lisbon

Dear Colleagues,

The 14th International Conference on Mobility and Transport for Elderly and Disabled Persons will be held in Lisbon, Portugal, from 28 to 31 July 2015.

The 14th TRANSED conference will be hosted by Instituto Superior Técnico (IST) at Universidade de Lisboa.

TRANSED 2015 will gather scholars, decision-makers, industry, and citizens with an interest in accessibility issues and how to improve it. TRANSED 2015 International Conference received the formal endorsement of representatives of all stakeholders, namely: Government, Public Administration, Foundation for Science and Technology, Universities, and Transport and Infrastructure Operators, who will support the conference in several aspects.

The conference is organized under the theme “Aim and manage to implement inclusive access for all”. Please visit the web site for the selection of topics.

TRANSED 2015 will be an excellent opportunity to gather and share knowledge on any sort of mobility restrictions/accessibility

Website: http://www.transed2015.com/

Registration:

https://pco.abreu.pt/CLIENTES/abreu/formularios/form_4731902542.php

Follow the TRANSED2015 on:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/TRANSED-2015/487026641398455

Twitter: https://twitter.com/TRANSED2015

Download the mobile App:

Android: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.xtourmaker.transed

IOS: https://itunes.apple.com/pt/app/transed2015/id993138260?mt=8

CONFERENCE VENUE

TRANSED 2015 will be held at Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation.
http://www.gulbenkian.pt

ABOUT LISBON

Lisbon is a melting pot of cultures, flavours and spices. Lisbon is built on hills looking over the River Tagus. Modern and cosmopolitan, it is a great centre of culture and tourism, and a pleasure to discover on foot. Add to that its cultural diversity, laid-back feel and architectural time warp, and you have one of the most enjoyable cities in Europe.

Clean skies and the softness of its light are an integral part of the charm of this city. Seen from the river – one of the city’s many great viewpoints – Lisbon is an impressionist picture of low-rise ochre and pastel, punctuated by church towers and domes.

Several neighbourhoods offer interesting shopping areas of local flavour. Large, modern shopping malls with wide opening hours and easy access by public transport are also very popular.

One of the traditional centres of Lisbon’s nightlife is Bairro Alto, with its fado houses, restaurants and dozens of bars and clubs. After the riverside area was remodelled for Expo98, night life in Lisbon gained a new dimension both on east and west fronts.

People who want to get away from the city centre, however, can go with modern railways to Sintra or to Estoril and Cascais, about 30km away, with beautiful landscapes, urban settings and nice restaurants and bars.

Lisbon is a city that receives yearly a large number of visitors, both in business and leisure. Its offer of hotels is very strong, in all price categories, including some charming traditional units as well as large ones from most international chains.

Public Transport in Lisbon has recently undergone great improvements and includes underground, suburban trains and ferries, low floor buses and light rail, while maintaining in operation a small set of old tramway lines, among which the famous line 28, one of the icons of the city.

Day and Multi-day passes are available to enjoy the full public transport network without hassle.

For more information about Lisbon and tips on what to see, please visit the Tourism Bureau website: http://www.visitlisboa.com/

TOPIC AREAS

Conference theme:

“Aim and manage to implement inclusive access for all”

STREAMS:

The conference is organized in two streams of intervention, being:

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

Practice and Experience:

All conference topics are very open and can be approached from any of the two referred streams. For each topic a number of sub-topics are open from the outset but others can be created. In addition, special sessions can also be envisaged and participants interested in organizing it should contact the Conference Chair for that purpose.

Topic A: Policy approaches for mobility needs and solutions for the ageing and disabled population
The demographic evolution of Society enables to foresee next decades with a substantial increase of ageing population with different degrees of disabilities. In addition, changes in patterns of living and more monoparental families are formed which represent users of temporary restrictions. Cities and regions must reflect in these changes and adjust their policies accordingly so that user needs are satisfied
Subtopics:
      A1 – Meeting the needs of people with disabilities in light of changing demographics;
      A2- The economic and social implications of living and coping with disabilities;
      A3– Cases in policy actions: turning legislation into action.

Topic B: Restricted accessibility as an integrated part of mobility management.
Restricted accessibility or reduced mobility (different parts of the world use different designations) should not be managed as an isolated segment. This approach has led to exclusion of these groups of users despite providing them with increase quality of service. This approach must be changed towards a full integration of restricted accessibility in mobility management enabling citizens with temporary or permanent mobility to benefit from a complete inclusion in society. Mobility and accessibility are instruments for that inclusion.
Subtopics:
B1 – Defining and measuring accessibility;
B2 – Creating accessible urban environments;
B3 – Restricted accessibility in urban transport: success stories;
B4 – Rural accessibility issues;
B5 – Transport contribution for inclusive tourism;
B6 – Ensuring joined approach to planning and delivery for door to door mobility;
B7 – Designing and delivering accessibility for major events (e.g. Olympics etc.).

Topic C – Finding solutions through innovation

Innovation is a wide encompassing concept with an extensive meaning that can go from organization of processes to invention of new technology. Today a major challenge in mobility management is to bridge from mass transit to the capillary needs of the different segments of users. Innovation is required to create new and flexible services that can complement the regular public transport and provide an effective seamless mobility chains for all users, with and without disabilities.

Subtopics
        C1 – New technologies and tools;
       C2 – Engaging with users for flexible mobility solutions;
        C3 – Case studies of innovative approaches to restricted accessibility;
        C4 – New impairment realities (e.g. young families, monoparental families, ageing impairment, etc)

December 24, 2014

Seeking Incredible and Accessible India

THE PURSUIT OF HAPPINESS

Seeking Incredible And Accessible India

How Jindal Saw managing director Sminu Jindal is championing the cause of accessibility for the disabled
HIMANSHU KAKKAR

Sep 19, 2014

While her company helps people and businesses gain access to oil and gas through the pipes it creates, for Sminu Jindal, MD, Jindal Saw, access has a completely different meaning. Left wheelchair bound ever since an accident at the age of 11, for 41-year-old Jindal, access means having to navigate offices, homes, bus stops, railway stations, hospitals and schools with limited mobility. She recounts an ordeal during a journey from Delhi to Allahabad by train. “I was wheeled through railway tracks to reach the other platform. Once inside the train, we realised that there was no space for the wheelchair to turn. I had to be lifted and placed on my seat,” she recalls. Add to this the frequent, insensitive enquiries by airline or hospital staff — “Aap kya zara sa bhi nahi uth sakte? (Can you not move even a little bit?)” — as they try to help her to her seat.

After years of dealing with such issues, Jindal decided to take control of the situation by launching Svayam in 2001 with the support of the Jindal Group in order to create awareness about accessibility issues. Once she realised that mere dissemination of information was not enough, though, Svayam started getting actively involved in grassroots work. “India has perhaps the best policies and disabled-friendly infrastructure, but all on paper,” Jindal says. So, she decided to work with the government and in 2007 appealed to the ministry of tourism to release annual funds to state governments and agencies only if they ensure that historical and tourist sites are fully accessible. “The proposal was accepted and Delhi’s Qutub Minar is our biggest success story,” she beams.

Thereafter, Jindal worked with the Archaeological Survey of India to make World Heritage Sites in Delhi, Agra and Goa barrier-free. “In the world of tourism, we need to project India as ‘Incredible, Accessible India’,” she says. Besides helping introduce a query relating to differently abled persons in the Census, Svayam functions as a one-stop shop for anything to do with accessibility, having been invited by government agencies, such as the NDMC and the ministry of education, government of Delhi, to make public conveniences and schools accessible and barrier-free.

Jindal feels that much can be done with respect to attitudinal changes and sensitisation, when it comes to accessibility issues. “The government wants to take steps towards increasing access but nobody sensitises civil engineers or contractors about such things. They sometimes don’t even know why ramps are installed. And most schools don’t even accept handicapped children.”

Thankfully, there is no lack of success stories for her to feel good about the future of accessibility in the country. With a glint in her eyes, she recounts the day she felt great pride at the work done by Svayam: seeing an old man in a wheelchair getting into one of the state transport buses using a ramp installed with the help of the organisation.

For most people, it is quite hard to balance work with their passions and ensure that they don’t neglect either of these. But, for Jindal, there is no distinction between the two as the issue concerns her deeply and personally. “In terms of involvement and dedication, this is very different from setting up a hospital or launching 10 schools. I am giving others a hope for a better life,” she sums up.

Source: Outlook Business dot com

June 23, 2014

Maharastra ASI monuments to have braille signage soon

Shaniwarwada, Ajanta & Ellora to soon host signages in Braille

Neha Madaan,TNN | May 25, 2014, 06.03 AM IST

PUNE: The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) will put up information and signages in Braille at historical monuments in the state. The initiative, launched in some monuments in Delhi, will be introduced in phases. It will cover heritage sites like Shaniwarwada, Aga Khan Palace, Elephanta Caves, Kanheri caves, Solapur Fort, Ajanta and Ellora and several others.

An ASI official told TOI on Monday that ticketed monuments in the Mumbai-circle will be taken up for installing Braille signages. In the next phase, they will be put up in the remaining monuments, he said.

“The modalities of this initiative including the budget will be worked out soon. We will take inputs from Delhi and Bhopal, where the initiative has already been started,” the official said.

A senior official from the ASI Delhi headquarters, said, “We realized that ASI has to cater to the visually-challenged, along with introducing other measures for people with disabilities. These include ramps, wheelchairs, and washrooms. Putting up information in Braille is part of the exercise.”

New Delhi-based Svayam, an initiative of the SJ Charitable Trust, has been working with ASI as consultants for over eight years, in making heritage sites accessible to all, including senior citizens and the disabled.

Abha Negi, director of Svayam, said, “We had made several suggestions to ASI in our audit reports on monuments, including putting up tactile maps and information in Braille in monuments. They could put up the tactile map in only one monument, but we do hope they put it in other places in the state as well.”

Negi added that Braille signages are a snapshot of what the monuments have to offer, how the visitor can go around, apart from providing information on the history of the place. Tactile maps help the user in getting knowledge of their environment. “It is a guiding map which shows the user how the monument is and the topography of the place,” she said.

Meanwhile, the newly-formed ASI Nagpur circle will focus on introducing basic amenities before installing the Braille signs. “Facilities like drinking water, toilets and ordinary signs are being planned in monuments such as Markanda in Gadchiroli district and in Lonar and Ramtek. As many as 25 such monuments will be taken up in 2014-15, with an approximate budget of Rs 20 lakh per monument,” an official said.

Box: Disabled-friendly signs

The signs will be easily visible with more focus on the background and panel contrasts,

Contrasting the text and symbols with the panel will make the sign easily readable

Tactile text and symbols along with Braille will help a blind person read the sign

Signs which show the correct use of colour contrast, words, pictogram and arrow directions will cater to diverse users

(Source: Svayam)