Supreme Court Directs Delhi University to Enhance Accessibility for Disabled Students at Campus Law Centre

The Supreme Court has directed Delhi University (DU) to submit a comprehensive affidavit regarding the physical infrastructure and accessibility provisions for persons with disabilities at the Campus Law Centre (CLC). This directive follows a petition by a disabled student, Jayant Singh Raghav, expressing concerns about the provision of assistive devices for disabled students during exams.

Justice Purushottam Kumar Kaurav emphasized addressing the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016, in the affidavit, incorporating suggestions from advocate Kamal Gupta and examining how the university has implemented the provisions of the Act and recommendations from the Access Audit.

The court granted the university a seven-day deadline to submit the affidavit, providing an opportunity to ensure compliance with the 2016 Act and the recommendations of the Access Audit report. Earlier, the Access Audit had recommended improvements to the physical infrastructure and accessibility at CLC.

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The report highlighted the University Grants Commission’s guidelines and standards for accessibility for higher education institutions, proposed to be implemented immediately in 2022. It also called for the installation of at least 10 ramps with tactile facilities at various locations in CLC.

Despite the mandatory requirements outlined by the UGC guidelines, the report shed light on the absence of lifts in the current CLC building. Due to the lack of lifts, classrooms for disabled individuals are limited to the ground floor. Recognizing this, the report advocated for the installation of functional accessible toilets at every floor destination across the CLC campus.

The case is scheduled for further hearing on December 7.