Disabilities court fines 96 bodies Rs 50,000 each for non-compliance

NEW DELHI: The Court of the Chief Commissioner of Persons with Disabilities ( CCPD ) imposed a penalty of Rs 50,000 each on 96 establishments, including Standardisation Testing and Qualify Certification (STQC) Directorate of the ministry of electronics & information technology, for failing, as of mid-June, to comply with accessibility standards for websites, mobile applications and other digital platforms.

The list includes central ministries, their departments and several private establishments that are among 155 establishments which were slapped with a fine of Rs 10,000 in Feb, with a warning of higher penalty in case of non-compliance.

The court highlighted 95 establishments (minus STQC) that now face higher penalties neither submitted an audit report nor appointed an Integrated Audit & Assurance Professional (IAAP)-certified auditor, and did not even report initiating the process of appointment of auditors as of June 17.

The ministries include cooperation, civil aviation, corporate affairs, drinking water and sanitation, earth sciences, food processing, labour and employment, ports, shipping and waterways, railways, road, transport and highways, skill development and entrepreneurship, statistics and programme implementation, steel, panchayati raj, information and broadcasting and Ayush.

In its June 20 order, the CCPD gave the establishments seven days to deposit the penalty in the National Fund for Persons with Disabilities.