*"Logged Out of Life: When Digital Access Becomes a Daily Battle"*
By Praveen Kumar G. The recent Supreme Court of India’s landmark order directing the government to ensure digital KYC accessibility for visually impaired persons is undoubtedly a welcome and long-overdue move. The Court recognized that equal access to digital services is a fundamental right, and that denial of such access violates Articles 15, 19 and 21 of the Constitution. This order comes in response to a petition highlighting the inaccessibility of key online platforms, especially those related to public service delivery. While the verdict brings a sense of hope, I remain perplexed and worried: how long will it truly take for this order to translate into full, real-world freedom for us to access digital content independently and with dignity? *Everyday Struggles in a Digital World: *For many of us who are blind or visually impaired, each day is a battle with digital content. From scanned images of official documents and PDF forms that are unreadable, to mobile applications that are incompatible with screen readers, the capture images on various portals and other barriers are endless. Most of them have capture image or the mobile apps are not accessible . Many portals such as those for applying for public services are riddled with inaccessible menus, pop-ups, or captcha verification. *False Assumptions and a Culture of Insensitivity: *Unfortunately, we live in a world that is still largely insensitive to the needs of people with disabilities. The prevailing attitude is: “If there’s a screen reader and you’ve been given a digital device, your problem is solved.” But that’s far from the truth. The existence of a screen reader is only one part of the puzzle. What use is a tool if the platforms it’s supposed to interact with are inherently inaccessible? And we still remain “loged out” This insensitivity is also seen in how complaints are often ignored, and how accessibility compliance is treated as a formality, rather than a commitment to human dignity and rights. *Why Digital Access Means Freedom: *In today’s world, digital access is not a luxury—it’s a lifeline. From banking to ordering food, from purchasing groceries to travel bookings, from telemedicine and education to employment and civic participation, the digital realm governs nearly every aspect of our lives. Without equitable access, we are denied the basic freedom to live, learn, work, and connect like anyone else and it often infringes on our privacy as then we have no choice but to seek for sighted assistance to login. *A Ray of Hope, But the Road Ahead is Long: *The Supreme Court's ruling, which mandates that digital services be made compliant with the Guidelines for digital KYC (GIGW) 3.0 and WCAG 2.1 standards, is a crucial step forward. It has also asked for a nodal officer to monitor implementation and directed the creation of an accessibility audit report within a specific time frame. Still, the road ahead is long. Implementation delays, lack of awareness, and limited technical capacity can slow progress. But this ruling gives us legal ground to demand change. “until then we shall continue to remain “logged out of lifeline services and at the mercy of sighted assistance forgoing our privacy and dignity” *sincerely * -- Praveen -- Disclaimer: 1. Contents of the mails, factual, or otherwise, reflect the thinking of the person sending the mail and AI in no way relates itself to its veracity; 2. AI cannot be held liable for any commission/omission based on the mails sent through this mailing list.. Search for old postings at: http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]/ --- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "AccessIndia" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. To view this discussion visit https://groups.google.com/a/accessindia.org.in/d/msgid/accessindia/CABpSer3cvAohqn5VGypML4FmaCmGSx63KzHacBGbpnYX4xma4g%40mail.gmail.com.
