Questions over design of access path at Bessie

Disability groups are following this initiative by Greater Chennai Corporation closely and offering the civic body suggestions to make the design better

As the construction of an access path on Besant Nagar Beach progresses at a swift pace, questions about its disabled-friendliness looms large.

Recently, members of Disability Rights Alliance (DRA) wanted Greater Chennai Corporation to share the final design drawing.

In September, DRA members met with Regional Deputy Commissioner (South) — GCC and representatives of the architectural firm implementing the project to share their concerns as well as make sure the mistakes that stand out at the Marina Beach access ramp are not repeated.

“At the Marina Beach, the floor level of the ramp is almost equal to the road level. Here, you need to get down by two feet, so we wanted a L-shaped ramp that will run parallel to the road after which the wooden pathway will begin,” says Satish Kumar, a member of DRA who was part of the meeting.

Members suggested that sand bags be placed under the wooden pathway to increase the stability of the structure which can happen when sand loosens.

Changes in railing design so as to help people with gripping difficulty; an easily dismantable sea deck that can be moved in the event of cyclone; wheelchair accessible toilets, storage container for keeping beach wheelchairs, life jacket and mobi mats; and QR coded multilingual beach “rules” communication board at the road entrance were among suggestions made at the meet.

Although the access ramp at Marina Beach received a lot of positive reviews from across the country, the facility did face many challenges. It suffered partial damage during Cyclone Mandous that hit the city in December 2022 and was out of bounds for the differently-abled. More recently, during the Chennai Air Show, some of the hand railing got damaged.

A GCC official looking after the project says for some of the recommendations given by disability groups Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) concurrence is required.

“If we deviate from any of the CRZ norms then we need to submit the design proposal again,” says the official. Suggestions for a disabled-friendly toilet is not on the sands of the beach, so we can incorporate it. The engineer says they have learnt from past experiences, especially from the ramp at Marina, and the design for Besant Nagar is guided by this knowledge.

“One metre deep (pillar design) and square pavement have been changed from the Marina ramp design,” says the official.

Vaishnavi Jayakumar, a member of DRA, asks why design elements they have recommended cannot happen before submitting the CRZ design. “If the key person implementing this can work along with us, that would be ideal,” says Vaishnavi.

Published - November 05, 2024 01:16 pm IST