HC seeks Centre's response to plea for visually impaired-friendly banking services

 The Delhi High Court on Tuesday asked the Centre and Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to file response to a plea seeking to make all currency and the digital means of banking transactions accessible to the visually impaired and to stop the circulation of currency which cannot be detected by them.

A division Bench of Chief Justice Rajendra Menon and Justice V. Kameswar Rao issued notice to the Central government and the RBI on the plea filed by Blind Graduates Forum of India through advocate Ila Haldia.

In the plea, advocate Haldia told the court that the visually impaired are facing a tough situation as neither the physical currency nor digital means of financial transactions are accessible to them.

Therefore, the forum's counsel has sought direction to lay down standards for design of bank notes and coins and make all forms of physical currency and the digital means of transactions accessible to the visually impaired.

The forum has also requested the court to issue direction to stop circulation of the inaccessible physical currency and withdraw all such inaccessible physical currency in a phased manner.

The plea further pleaded to counsel to lay down standards for making banking services including ATMs and net banking accessible to the visually impaired.

It also prayed for providing technological solutions viable for the visually impaired and compliance of such accessibility standards.-IANS