The Supreme Court on Wednesday directed the Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities to actively participate in finalising a policy aimed at granting railway travel concessions to acid attack survivors traveling for medical care.
A three-judge bench comprising Chief Justice Surya Kant, Justice Joymalya Bagchi, and Justice V Mohana granted the Union government six weeks to place the draft policy on record. Directing Additional Solicitor General Archana Pathak Dave to submit the document, the court also urged the Ministry of Railways to evaluate the grant of travel concessions with a liberal approach before scheduling the matter for further consideration.
Draft Policy And Inter-Departmental Coordination
The court issued its instructions after taking note that the Centre has already prepared a draft policy following consultations with key stakeholders, including the petitioner organisation, the NGO Atijeevan Society.
Chief Justice Kant stated that the Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities, which operates under the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment, must be associated with the process to help shape the final policy. The court had previously issued a notice to the Centre on the public interest litigation seeking designated train quotas and discounted fares, followed by a formal request on July 16 for the government to clarify its position on granting concessional air-conditioned class travel.
Centre Proposes Relief Under Patient Category
The Centre had informed the bench on August 13 that it agreed in principle to establish a concession framework for survivors. Outlining the government’s approach, Dave submitted that the Centre intends to provide the travel benefits under the patient category rather than creating a separate classification within the disability framework.
Dave explained that the government maintains reservations about grouping acid attack survivors under the disabled category because certain other groups within that classification are not entitled to railway travel concessions. She had previously informed the bench that the railways already offers fare concessions across 21 recognised categories of persons with disabilities and is considering the introduction of an emergency travel quota for all disabled individuals.
Medical Hardships And Logistical Hurdles
The petition filed by Atijeevan Society underscores the critical medical necessity of accessible, long-distance transit. According to the plea, acid attack survivors must undertake frequent journeys over four to five years to undergo multiple reconstructive surgeries, advanced ophthalmic procedures, and prolonged post-operative recovery. These super-speciality medical services are largely limited to tertiary healthcare facilities in major cities such as Delhi, Chennai, and Hyderabad.
The plea stated that because of severe burn injuries, chronic itching, and vulnerable post-surgical conditions, survivors frequently require the climate-controlled environment of air-conditioned train coaches. However, steep ticket costs make routine travel unaffordable, while the existing system prevents survivors from accessing either the concessional fares or the reserved seat quotas allocated to persons with disabilities.
Counsel for the petitioner also highlighted administrative obstacles, noting that survivors who were forced to ingest acid face severe challenges in obtaining the requisite medical certificates directly from treating hospitals to secure train reservations.
