"Despite a robust legal framework, accessibility for persons with disabilities remains a promise deferred." Examine this with reference to India's aviation sector.

India is the world's third-largest aviation market, with more than 350 million passengers a year [1]. Yet a 2026 Supreme Court PIL alleges a "systemic failure" to give persons with disabilities (PwDs) dignified air travel [1]. The gap lies in enforcement, not in law.

A robust framework on paper

• Constitutional: Articles 14 and 21 (life with dignity) support a right to travel independently and with dignity [1].
• Statutory: Under the RPwD Act, 2016, Section 40 requires accessibility standards and Sections 44–46 and 89 penalise non-compliance [2].
• Sectoral: DGCA's CAR Section 3, Series 'M', Part I bars discrimination and requires assistance. Priority security screening is provided at AAI, JV and PPP airports [3].
• Programmatic: The Accessible India Campaign (2015) targets accessible airports and ICT [4].

Why the promise remains deferred

• Standards were advisory, not binding: In Rajive Raturi v. Union of India (2024), the Supreme Court struck down Rule 15 of the RPwD Rules, 2017 as ultra vires because it left standards to self-regulation. It ordered mandatory rules within three months [2]. Aviation standards drafted on MoSJE's direction remain pending [3], so the penalties cannot apply.
• Features are counted, not checked: Officially, 35 international and 55 domestic airports have ramps, accessible toilets and Braille [5]. The plea, however, cites broken equipment [1].
• A narrow idea of access: Ramps help wheelchair users, but visually and hearing-impaired passengers face "silent airports" with no other way to communicate [1].
• Digital exclusion: Digi Yatra and booking interfaces were not built to be accessible from the start [1].
• Split accountability: The Court had to issue notice to five bodies: MoCA, DGCA, AAI, CISF and the Digi Yatra Foundation [1].
• The burden falls on the passenger: MoCA advises PwDs to request assistance in advance [6]. Access comes on request, not by default.

Way forward

• Notify the aviation standards as mandatory, with RPwD Act penalties attached [2].
• DGCA should audit whether equipment works and publish results airport by airport.
• Apply accessible-ICT norms to Digi Yatra and keep a staffed non-digital option [4].

India's aviation accessibility framework is sound in design but weak in delivery. Binding standards, audits of working equipment and universal design in fast-expanding terminals can turn judicial scrutiny into lasting reform. That would deliver Article 21's promise of dignity, the UNCRPD's accessibility mandate and SDG 10's goal of inclusion.