Disabilities group wants govt bldg sealed

Panaji: The Disability Rights Association of Goa (DRAG) has demanded that the Shram Shakti Bhavan at Patto, Panaji, be sealed until at least one of its two elevators are made functional. In a letter to the North Goa collector, the group stated it had received information that both lifts of the building, which houses important government offices, have been out of order since the past few days.
“The non-functioning of both the lifts is only due to the apathy of the public works department (PWD), which is entrusted with the maintenance of the building,” DRAG president Avelino de Sa said. He further pointed out that it was mandatory under the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016, to provide barrier-free access to persons with disabilities, including functional elevators.
DRAG also said the situation was inconveniencing senior citizens and disabled people working at government offices in the building.
In June, TOI had reported that both the building’s elevators were declared inoperative by the PWD, leaving the building inaccessible to many. Unable to climb the stairs to his office on the fourth floor, a polio afflicted employee of the Employment Exchange even began working out of a makeshift office on the ground floor. While one lift was subsequently made functional, the PWD stated that the replacement of both the elevators was under way.