A wheelchair-bound flier, Arushi Singh, recently shared her distressing experience at the Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose International Airport (NSCBI) in Kolkata on X (formerly twitter), which has sparked widespread outrage. During a routine security check, an airport staff member allegedly asked her to stand up three times, despite being visibly aware of her disability.
Singh recounted the incident detailing how the officer insisted she stand and walk into the security kiosk. “Yesterday evening, during the security clearance at Kolkata airport, the officer asked me (a wheelchair user) to stand up, not once but thrice,” Singh wrote on her X-handle. She explained to the officer that she was unable to comply due to her disability, but her explanations were met with the same request.
The situation escalated when, inside the kiosk, the officer again demanded that Singh stand for just two minutes. Singh had to reiterate that her disability was congenital and standing was not an option for her. The lack of understanding and empathy from the airport staff left Singh feeling shaken and furious. In her post, Singh also tagged the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF), the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), and the Ministry of Civil Aviation, expressing her dismay over the incident.
She pointed out that this was not an isolated event and criticised the Kolkata airport for not learning from past mistakes. The incident has raised questions about the sensitivity training of airport personnel and the implementation of proper protocols for passengers with disabilities. There has been no official statement from the Kolkata airport so far.