Wheels of Inclusion: Driving Accessibility Forward
Imagine waterlogged roads during heavy monsoons. It's a nightmare for any commuter. But even causal rains can bring the workday of employees with disabilities to a standstill. And that’s only part of the problem.
EnAble India works for the economic independence & dignity of persons with disability. About half of our employees are people with disabilities. The work they do is unrelentingly difficult and a victory, however big or small, comes after many losses. Disability livelihood experts at EnAble India take rejection in stride and show up battle ready the next day.
We want to make their lives a little easier, so that their energy can be better spent toward enabling other humans with disabilities.
While our building has some accessible features, it’s very much a work in progress. Therefore, we want to raise funds to purchase an accessible vehicle.
Dhanya Ravi, an executive, is a woman with brittle bone disease. Due to lack of accessible transport, she is unable to come into the office every day and when she does, the organization pitches in to cover her commute expenses. Around 2500 rupees for 4 hours. Accessible vehicles through small independent companies are not common and when available they don’t come on time. “I want to be able to travel without depending on anyone,” she says, “I want to come in whenever I want.”
Debashree, an associate manager, is a wheelchair user who values punctuality but is unable to put it into practice herself.
“I don't enjoy driving in the rain because my wheelchair's battery and joystick malfunction due to water,” she says. This leads to cancelled/postponed meetings and her productivity slows down.
Sayomdeb Mukherjee, a senior manager, is another wheelchair user who faces problems due to rain. The wheels get wet and it becomes unusable the next day. There are multiple instances of other wheelchair users whose workday takes a hit due to wet roads, large potholes overflowing with drain water, run off rainwater etc. People with spinal cord injuries who are using wheelchairs may even hurt themselves or get bedsores when travelling in inaccessible vehicles.
We at EnAble India believe work is core to human dignity. But with our current scenario, not every employee’s 9-5 looks the same.
The 15th edition of the TCS10K is here and EnAble India is joining the run on April 28th, 2024. Our goal is to raise 40 lakhs for a 3–5-seater vehicle that can accommodate three wheelchair users and others with various modifications. If you want to enable accessible India, this is your chance to pitch in.
Help us raise funds for our specific needs.
EnAble India is a non-profit organization working for economic independence and dignity of persons with disability (PwDs) since 1999, impacting thousands of PwDs and stakeholders. Considered to be a pioneer in employability and employment of persons with disability, EnAble India has catered to the needs of 19 disabilities thus far.We have impacted 325,000+ individuals including persons with disabilities and their families in 28 states and 7 union territories in India. In the past 23 years, EnAble India has collaborated with 726 companies and 229 partner organizations across 1253 locations in 25 countries. We have opened up 388 job roles across 34 sectors. We have built 12+ models and frameworks to train employable persons with disability, and includable leaders capable of leading the change. In fact, EnAble India’s models and content are used across many organizations not only in India but also in Africa, Asia, Europe and America.
Contact Person: Kaavyasri D A
Email: kaavyasri@enableindia.org
Phone: 9880432792
A big thank you to all those who have donated on this page.
