Media Release:
Svayam (an initiative of Sminu Jindal Charitable Trust) and the host of the 13th International Conference on Mobility and Transport for Elderly and Disabled People- TRANSED 2012, today announced institution of the first ever Accessibility awards.
To host these awards at TRANSED – 13th international conference on Mobility and Transport for Elderly and the Disabled persons to be held from September 17th -20th 2012 at New Delhi, India.
Svayam (an initiative of Sminu Jindal Charitable Trust) and the host of the 13th International Conference on Mobility and Transport for Elderly and Disabled People- TRANSED 2012, today announced institution of the first ever Accessibility awards. To be given on the sidelines of the conference, the awards will be conferred on agencies involved in development and maintenance of most accessible public places. These awards will play a pivotal role in encouraging the development of policies, practices and relationships to ensure that achievements on accessibility are sustainable and meaningful.
The Theme of TRANSED 2012 is – “Seamless access for all: Universal Design in Transport system and built infrastructure, a key element in the creation of livable cities.’’
“It is an effort to recognize committed businesses and organizations that go significantly beyond the legal requirements of providing excellent accessibility initiatives to accommodate people with disabilities. The three different categories of the award will be – Transport, Heritage Site /Place of Tourist Interest and Hospitality. The awards will acknowledge agencies taking social initiative and will motivate others in the community to step up and take positive action,” said Sminu Jindal.
Svayam was awarded the bid for the 13th TRANSED at Transport Research Bureau of USA against Germany and South Africa. TRANSED 2012 is designed to review advances in research, profile international breakthroughs and explore perspectives for technological innovations in response to the mobility challenges of an ageing population and persons with disabilities. It also aims to examine ways to address challenges associated with improving mobility and transportation needs for the elderly and disabled.
Svayam has been making tremendous efforts for making India accessible to all. It has been closely working with various groups/ agencies to provide an inclusive infrastructure for all. Svayam was also awarded the National Tourism Award of Excellence jointly with ASI for making the World Heritage Site of Qutab Minar in New Delhi as Most Accessible & Disabled Friendly Historical Monument.
About TRANSED
Founded in the 1970’s by Professor Norman Ashford (University of Loughborough) and Professor William Bell (University of Florida), the International Conference on Mobility and Transport for Elderly and Disabled People has been held twelve times in ten countries. From its roots as a small, specialized meeting among a handful of researchers, the conference today attracts between 200 and 600 delegates from up to 40 nations on six continents. Conference proceedings are a standard reference for researchers, planners and operators alike, and are referenced in the TRB Transport Research Information System TRIS.
Professionals and consumers throughout the world recognize the TRANSED series conferences as the key forum for scientific and philosophical advances in the pursuit of mobility and access for elderly and disabled people.
About Svayam and its founder Ms. Sminu Jindal
Svayam an Initiative of Sminu Jindal Charitable Trust has been working towards providing independence and dignity to people with reduced mobility. Svayam has been engaged in making various public places accessible to all especially the elderly and disabled.
As the result of an accident at the age of eleven, the founder of Svayam, Ms. Sminu Jindal became a wheelchair user but this did not deter her spirits and she is dedicated to the cause of improving the lives of people with reduced mobility. She devotes extensive time, resources and energy to realize Svayam′s mandate to work towards making public infrastructure accessible to all including reduced mobility people.
Discharging a dual role of being a successful businesswoman, as the Managing Director of Jindal SAW Ltd., and a person dedicated to creating social consciousness by way of Svayam, Sminu Jindal was undeterred by time or familial constraints. She has and continues to carry out all her roles, including being a mother of two children, beautifully. Every new role adds a new facet to her personality.
Svayam aspires to make India barrier free and provide universal access to all. It aims at not only generating awareness about the trials and tribulations of people with reduced mobility (that includes the elderly, expecting mothers, mothers with new born babies as well as toddlers and persons with disabilities) but also mould the opinions of public and policy makers in favour of public private participation in providing and executing accessibility solutions.