Clubs go disabled-friendly with wheelchair ramps, spl facilities
Times of India | 5 October 2024
Kolkata: Several puja organisers in the city are going the extra mile to promote inclusivity, making the festivities accessible for all. These pandals have wheelchair ramps, dedicated volunteers and separate walkways for senior citizens, Braille stands to explain themes, and feeding rooms for new mothers.
At SB Park in Behala Thakurpukur, the organisers are constructing make-shift AC baby-care rooms, as well as rooms for tired senior citizens and disabled visitors.“We will also have Braille display stands and have decked up our pandal in a manner so that none feels left out. We will have separate facilities for the blind and other differently abled persons apart from dedicated volunteers to take them around the pandal premises,” said club president Sanjay Majumder.
Organisers of Dum Dum Park Tarun Sangha and Salt Lake’s BJ Block puja have made wide and low-gradient ramps for wheelchair-bound visitors and senior citizens. “It gets taxing for disabled visitors to enter the pandals, especially during peak hours. So, we have arranged for special guided tours for the disabled,” said Sunando Mitra, secretary of Dum Dum Park Tarun Sangha.
An NGO working for the blind and other differently abled persons — NIP — are also organizing an awareness campaign and hosting a contest to select the best facilities for the disabled, in which 250 pujas will participate.
At Young Boy Club in Chitpore, organisers will have special waiting and refreshment zones for the disabled and for senior citizens, along with ramps. “ We will have special facilities for disabled persons so that they have fun too,” said club president Vikrant Singh.
Organisers of Evergreen Club in Barrackpore and Belgachhia Sadharan Durgotsav will open club washrooms for women, kids and the elderly. “We will also take senior citizens for a puja parikrama and gift food and clothes to underprivileged kids,” said Joydeep Das of Evergreen Club.