Mumbai, Apr 22 (PTI) The Bombay High Court on Tuesday appointed a three-member special committee to examine from every angle the issues faced by senior citizens and specially-abled persons at airports, and submit a report to the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA).

The panel would be headed by former Andhra Pradesh high court judge, Goda Raghuram, consumer activist Shirish Deshpande and a representative from the DGCA.

A division bench of Justices G S Kulkarni and Advait Sethna said there was nothing adversarial in the order and that a thorough deliberation was required on the issue of facilities, including wheelchairs at the airports for senior citizens and specially-abled persons.

“The committee’s role is recommendatory in nature. The committee shall study the issue and submit its report to the DGCA. It is for the DGCA ultimately to consider the same and take appropriate decisions,” the court said.

“It is only a social service exercise,” it added.

The order was passed in two separate petitions – one by a senior citizen woman and her daughter and another by a 53-year-old man – raising the issue of non-availability of wheelchairs and other facilities at the Mumbai international airport.

The mother-daughter duo in their plea said the 81-year-old mother had to give up her wheelchair for her daughter, who was suffering from acute arthritis after they were given only one mobility aid on landing in Mumbai in September 2023.

The bench posted the matter for further hearing on June 30. PTI SP NP