Ulgulan Talks! : Interview with Priya Srivastava
In this fifteenth interview of The Sangyan’s ‘Ulgulan Talks!’, an endeavour to voice the issues of the larger interest of ‘We, the People’, Abhishek (the interviewer) talks with Priya Srivastava, a young woman with locomotor disability from Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh (India) primarily regarding her lived experiences with disability and climate change.
Priya is a lawyer and did her graduation with a Bachelor of Laws. She can be reached at her Instagram profile.
This interview was conducted in October 2024 through online mode in written format. The due informed consent of the interviewee has been taken before the publication of the blog. Further, the ‘Right to be Forgotten’ of the interviewee shall be respected.
Please tell about yourself in some detail. Your life journey in essence.
I am a lawyer, disability advocate, and NCPEDP Javed Abidi Fellow on Disability (2023–2024), committed to advancing the rights of people with disabilities in India. I have spinal muscular atrophy, which has fueled my understanding of the challenges faced by disabled individuals, particularly regarding caregiving.
I am currently leading efforts to develop policies that address the caregiving needs of disabled people, advocating for caregiver allowances, training programs, and better support systems. My work has garnered endorsements from key stakeholders, and I continue to engage with policymakers to bring about legislative change.
Through webinars, public campaigns, and direct engagement with government officials, I aim to create a more inclusive and supportive environment for disabled individuals across the country.
Please tell about your condition/disability and comorbidities in detail.
Spinal muscular atrophy (locomotor disability). Spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) is a genetic disease affecting the central nervous system, peripheral nervous system, and voluntary muscle movement (skeletal muscle).
Does climate change and its induced disasters (read extreme weather and climatic conditions like heatwaves, cyclones, floods, etc.) have any impact on your physical health/condition? If yes, please illustrate on the ways it affects you.
In 2015, the earthquake deeply affected my life, both physically and mentally. At the time, I was home alone, as my parents were at work and my caregiver was in her village. I was attending a tuition session when the earthquake hit. My teacher, though well-intentioned, wasn’t physically strong enough to transfer me to my wheelchair. While everyone else managed to evacuate, including the elderly who struggled to walk, I was left stuck, screaming and panicking.
Thankfully, a postman, who hadn’t even felt the tremors, helped my teacher transfer me to my wheelchair. But that was just the beginning of the challenge. With no one else around to assist, we faced the difficulty of navigating an old apartment lift.
In desperation, I asked a man I called “uncle” for help, but he refused, telling me not to use the lift before rushing off. With great effort, my teacher managed to help me into the lift, but the entire incident left me shaken. Since that day, I’ve developed intense anxiety about being alone, something I never feared before.
Does climate change and its induced disasters (read extreme weather and climatic conditions like heatwaves, cyclones, floods, etc.) have any impact on your mental health/condition? If yes, please illustrate on the ways it affects you.
I continue to have recurring dreams where I’m trapped during an earthquake, with no one there to rescue me, replaying the trauma of that day. My family eventually moved to a house on the ground floor, seeking a sense of safety.
That earthquake changed my life and gave me a firsthand understanding of how vulnerable disabled individuals are in disasters, showing me how climate change can intensify existing challenges.
What do you think about climate change and its induced disasters (read extreme weather and climatic conditions like heatwaves, cyclones, floods, etc.) acting as a threat multiplier and resulting in capability deprivation (like loss of livelihood, migration, or additional medical expenses, etc.)? Please provide a personal account, if plausible.
Winter poses significant challenges for me due to the extreme cold in North India, especially in December and January. I have to wear heavy clothing, which makes it more difficult for others to carry me, and the use of thick blankets restricts my movement while sleeping. The cold often causes my toes to swell, adding to my discomfort.
Additionally, as a bronchitis patient, I feel dryness and unease without adequate airflow, which heightens my discomfort. The cold weather also increases my chances of catching a cold, which often worsens into bronchitis or even lung infections.
Please tell about any measure/action you take to adapt and mitigate the negative impact of climate change and its induced disasters (read extreme weather and climatic conditions like heatwaves, cyclones, floods, etc.) in your life to avoid worse-off experiences (like avoid travelling during extreme weather conditions or certain medication, etc.)? Please provide a personal account if plausible.
I face significant challenges during both heat waves in April and May and cold waves in January. These extremes greatly affect my mobility, particularly in my hands, making it hard to write or move them. I remember one incident during a law exam in extreme cold — I knew all the answers but couldn’t write due to my frozen hands.
In frustration, I slammed my hands on the table, which resulted in wounds, but somehow, I managed to write. My handwriting, already impacted by my disability, became even less clear. I also need to use a heater during the winter months, as the cold makes me feel deeply uncomfortable.
What else you think that needs to be done to counter the worse-off experiences of climate change and its induced disasters (read extreme weather and climatic conditions like heatwaves, cyclones, floods, etc.) and to counter the disproportionate impact of climate change and its induced disasters on persons with disability concerning their physical and mental health, work and livelihood, hunger and poverty, disability-inclusive disaster risk reduction, etc. to ensure disability-inclusive climate justice.
To counter the disproportionate impact of climate change and its induced disasters on persons with disabilities, affecting their physical and mental health, work and livelihood, hunger and poverty, and disaster risk, several measures should be taken to ensure disability-inclusive climate justice:
Rescue plans should be practiced regularly as an exercise to ensure that disabled individuals can evacuate safely during emergencies. This will help build familiarity and reduce panic during actual disasters.
Training should be provided to family members and caregivers to equip them with the skills necessary to assist disabled individuals during disasters. This ensures that those closest to them are capable of providing timely help when needed.
An emergency kit should be prepared for disabled individuals, containing essential items such as medication, medical devices, food, water, and communication tools. This kit ensures they have immediate access to the resources necessary for survival and comfort during a crisis.
Equipments and assistive devices should be made waterproof to protect against floods or heavy rain. Ensuring that devices such as wheelchairs, communication aids, or hearing devices are safeguarded will enhance the resilience of disabled individuals in climate-induced disasters. These measures support disability-inclusive disaster risk reduction, ensuring that persons with disabilities are not left behind in disaster planning and response.
By addressing their unique needs, we can work toward disability-inclusive climate justice, helping to mitigate the broader impacts of climate change on the health, livelihood, and well-being of disabled communities.
This was Priya Srivastava talking about her life journey and lived experiences with disability and climate change. We at The Sangyan and Ulgulan Talks thank her for giving her precious time and an opportunity to know about her and her lived experiences.
Adv. Abhishek Kumar is the Ideator, Founder and Curator of The Sangyan, exploring the “Impact of Climate Change on Persons with Disabilities. The curator can be reached at <abhishek.ncpedp@gmail.com>.
The interview has been published on the blog of The Sangyan as part of its public engagement and discourse initiative called ‘Ulgulan Talks!’.
