Differently-abled Kolkata youth starts petition after harrowing train journey

Physical disability be damned Yash Sethiya is determined to see the world on his termsFor Yash Sethiya 24 the personal is political The resident of Howrah West Bengal has started a petition on Changeorg a global petition site that champions social and economic justice asking for better accessibility for people with disabilities in trains His decision was largely prompted by a challenging journey via train to Mumbai to watch British band Coldplay live in action last NovemberPhysical disability be damned Yash Sethiya is determined to see the world on his termsAn accident in Kota Rajasthan while preparing for the IITJEE five years ago left Sethiya with permanent paraplegia from midchest and confined to the wheelchair While struggling to put his life back together the youngster found that the odds are always stacked against the disabled more so in the RailwaysChallenges everywhereSethiya who runs a YouTube channel and frequently takes the train to meet relatives scattered across the country says the disabled rarely come into the equation in terms of accessibility to railway stations trains and toiletsldquoThe bogie for the disabled is mostly unclean and not airconditioned Some of us need to cool our bodies owing to our medical conditionsrdquo he explainsBesides most stations do not have ramps or lifts and often the disabled have be carried on chairs into the coach and onto the seat ldquoThis becomes difficult when other passengers are already trying to carry their luggage inrdquo says SethiyaAnd thinking about using the toilets in coaches is strictly a nono ldquoThey are so dirty that wheelchair users think twice before venturing inrdquo he saysHe points out that making reservations at ticket booking offices are no less a challenge for the disabled ldquoIn the last four to five times whenever I booked tickets I got upper berths despite furnishing my disability certificate specifying my needs at the time of making the reservationrdquoHe recalls that in December last year he and his family went on a trip to Kerala After booking the tickets the group of 11 found out that it was given all upper berths Neither Sethiyarsquos disability certificate nor an unclersquos senior citizen quota was of any use ldquoThe hardest part was to convince fellow passengers when we boarded in the middle of the night to exchange seats Some were gracious enough and with some we needed the help of the ticket checkerrdquo reveals the youngster During the return journey too the family faced problems getting lower berthsEnough was enoughA particularly exasperating train journey made Sethiya determined to have things changed He took the Howrah Mail to Mumbai to catch British rock band Coldplayrsquos performance at the Global Citizen Festival in November last year Again despite applying for a ticket under the disabled category he was given an upper berth to and from MumbaiBy midDecember his resolve grew and put up a petition on Changeorg titled Proper Seats and Accessibility for the Differently Abled People inside Trains in India requesting Railway Minister Suresh Prabhursquos intervention in addressing the needs of disabled persons The petition is just 33 short of the 200 signatures needed for Changeorg to send the petition to PrabhuldquoI know that Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu is very active on social media And thatrsquos why Irsquom seeking his direct interventionrdquo says SethiyaNida Hasan campaigns head India Changeorg hopes that the ministry of railways will take cognisance of the hardships the disabled face and act on it immediately