Apex Court Issues Notice In PIL Seeking Braille Inscription On Consumer Products, Medicines, Tickets And Currency
|The Supreme Court on August 27 issued notice in a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) seeking the implementation of the Braille Integration System across medicine prescriptions, consumer products, and currency notes to aid visually impaired persons. The PIL, filed under Article 32 by Medhansh Soni through his mother, highlights the daily challenges faced by visually impaired individuals due to the lack of Braille on essential items.
The Bench of Chief Justice DY Chandrachud, Justice JB Pardiwala and Justice Manoj Misra directed the respondents, including the Central Government and state agencies, to file their responses within four weeks.
The Writ Petition filed through AOR Nishant Kumar argues that the lack of such a system amounts to hostile discrimination, depriving visually impaired persons of equal access to public services and opportunities.
The PIL highlights that discrimination against visually impaired persons often manifests in indirect forms, where seemingly neutral policies disproportionately disadvantage them. This type of discrimination, referred to as "indirect or hostile discrimination," results in the denial of equal rights and opportunities, thus infringing on the constitutional principles of equality, accessibility, and a dignified life as guaranteed under Articles 14, 16, 19, and 21 of the Indian Constitution.
The petitioner, who was represented by Senior Advocate SB Upadhyay, points out the various challenges faced by visually impaired individuals due to the absence of Braille on essential items such as currency notes, product labels, and medical prescriptions. It further highlights the impact of the 2016 demonetization, which altered the size of currency notes, exacerbating the difficulties faced by visually impaired persons in identifying currency.
"There is plethora of challenges faced by visually impaired persons includes (i) difficulty in identifying currency notes (ii) inability to read product labels and medicine management (iii) challenges in navigating public places (iv) barrier in accessing information. In addition to the above, the Demonitisation of currency notes, which drastically changed the size of currency notes, has added to the plight of visually impaired individuals. Consequently, such class of persons face barriers and limitations in their ability to participate fully and independently in various aspects of life due to absence of braille integration across different domains which have been neglected by the Authorities," the PIL states.
The petition emphasizes that while India has made strides in supporting the visually impaired through technologies like Braille, the failure to integrate these systems into everyday life continues to marginalize this community. The PIL seeks the Supreme Court's intervention to issue guidelines mandating the implementation of the Braille Integration System, ensuring that visually impaired individuals can participate fully and independently in all aspects of life. It underscores the urgency of addressing this issue to uphold the constitutional mandate of substantive equality and prevent further marginalization of the visually impaired community.
The PIL prays for the following reliefs:
a) A directive for the formulation of a policy to implement the Braille Integration System across public and private sectors.
b) A policy mandating the embossing of information on consumer products, cosmetics, medical packets, and travel tickets.
c) Widespread publicity of any steps taken towards the self-support and independence of visually challenged individuals.
Cause Title: Medhansh Soni v. Union of India [WP (C) No. 000516/2024]