Inaugurating the first Telangana State Conference of National Platform for Rights of Disabled (NPRD) here on Saturday HMR Managing Director NVS Reddy has stated that Hyderabad Metro Rail is conscious of the special needs of differently abled people and will create state-of-the-art facilities for the blind, deaf, dumb and other physically challenged people.
Flagging off the Disabled Walk at Jubilee Bus Station in Secunderabad, he urged different sections of society to have empathy for the disabled and help them to live their lives with dignity and self-respect.
Reddy said that if proper training and facilities are given to the disabled persons they will prove themselves as more intelligent persons and their participation in Nation building is not far off. He stated that Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao instructed different departments of Telangana Government to be committed to the welfare of the physically challenged persons. He said that Hyderabad Metro Rail will have special facilities for all categories of physically challenged people at the Metro stations, platforms, concourse and will have special facilities to enter the Metro Train.
The HMR MD has further explained that the Hyderabad Metro Rail is being designed and executed as a disabled friendly system. Special care is being taken to build Metro stations and trains to cater to the needs of people with mobility impairment (wheelchair passengers), visual impairment (blind people), hearing and speech impairment. Stations are designed to provide barrier free environment for physically challenged. Ramps are provided at the road level of Metro stations to facilitate wheelchair movement up to the lifts.
Bigger lifts are being provided to easily accommodate and manoeuvre wheelchairs and the heights of operating buttons in lifts, fare gates, Ticket Vending Machines (TVM) etc., are designed in such a way to enable access for the physically challenged. Lift operating buttons will have information in Braille at all levels of the stations to help blind persons. Tactile strip will be provided throughout the stations from street level right up to the edge of the platform so that blind persons can get into the train on their own by tapping the floor with walking stick, added Mr.NVS Reddy.
M.Janardhan Reddy, National President, NPDE; G.Narasimha, State President, NPRD; T.Rajendar, State General Secretary, NPRD; and M.Jagga Raju, State Secretary, PNM also spoke on the occasion. (INN)