The new Master Plan for Delhi (MPD-2047), notified recently, speaks repeatedly of barrier-free streets, universal access and inclusive public spaces for persons with disabilities but experts have flagged that the plan is missing a disability Key Performance Indicator (KPI) in its framework.
They have raised concerns about whether these scattered commitments can translate into a city that is genuinely navigable end-to-end for persons with disabilities (PwDs), given the absence of a dedicated accessibility indicator in the Plan’s own monitoring framework.
The master plan, prepared by the Delhi Development Authority (DDA) and unveiled by Union Housing and Urban Affairs Minister Manohar Lal on August 20, states that all building structures, irrespective of land use, shall adhere to space standards for a barrier-free built environment.
It calls for pedestrian infrastructure to be designed as inclusive civic spaces prioritising the elderly, children and persons with disabilities (PwD).
It also mandates that schools follow provisions of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, and calls for reserving spaces for persons with disabilities in off-street public parking.
Multi-Modal Integration (MMI) plans for areas around metro and transit stations are to ensure “safe, barrier-free and walkable access,” the plan says, while walkability across the city is to be enhanced through “universally accessible streets.” Architect and accessibility consultant Anubha Singhal said the real promise of MPD-2047 lies not merely in more accessible buildings, but in accessibility becoming a property of the city itself, across streets, neighbourhoods, transport and everyday journeys.
“The critical question is accountability: when so many agencies shape one journey, who ensures that the journey as a whole remains accessible?” she said.
Disability inclusion researcher Kavya Mukhija said the MPD 2047 makes important commitments to universal accessibility and recognises persons with disabilities within spatial planning, but accessibility remains largely infrastructure-focused and is absent from the plan’s headline indicators.
“The risk is that we create designated accessible facilities instead of making mainstream schools, parks, transport and public spaces inclusive by default,” she said.
Puneet Singh Singhal, founder of Green Disability, said his concern is that Delhi could become “more accessible on paper” without becoming substantially easier for disabled people to live in.
“Accessibility should be measured through the experience of a complete journey. From leaving home and navigating the pavement, to crossing a road, reaching public transport, entering a workplace or hospital and returning home safely and independently,” he said.
The plan proposes 20 suggestive Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) in its monitoring framework, at Annexure 14, to track progress on the city’s objectives through 2047.
These cover air and water pollution, green cover, flood risk, wastewater reuse, groundwater levels, landfill stress, renewable energy use, seismic and fire safety, small-format housing, slum rehabilitation, public transport shift, clean-fuel vehicles, the Human Development Index, heritage conservation, street vibrancy and female workforce participation.
Experts said there is no separate KPI tracking accessibility for persons with disabilities among these 20 indicators.
Officials associated with the plan’s preparation have previously pointed out that MPD-2047’s consultation process included dedicated sessions with persons with disabilities during the 2020 stakeholder engagement exercise, and that the plan explicitly names Divyangjan among the groups Special Local Area Plans must provide for, alongside youth, women and children.
Provisions on barrier-free design are also written into the plan’s core development control norms rather than left to a voluntary chapter, meaning they would apply, at least on paper, to all new construction citywide, irrespective of land use.
Whether these commitments hold up in practice, experts say, will depend on coordination between the multiple agencies responsible for different stretches of a single journey — from local bodies maintaining footpaths, to transit operators running stations, to the DDA approving layouts — since a single gap can break an otherwise accessible route.
