JU takes first step towards inclusive campus; 200-metre stretch for visually impaired
Telegraph | 1 April 2025
A 200-metre stretch of Jadavpur University will have a tactile surface, marking its first step towards being an inclusive campus.
Tactile paving is a system of textured ground-surface indicators laid to assist the visually impaired.
The university is laying the tactile walkway along three water bodies. The work started in March.
A JU official said students can take the specially developed surface along the driveway after entering the campus through gate No. 4.
Some of the visually challenged students lauded the effort but also pointed out that the new path covered only a small stretch of the massive campus.
“We could create a 200-metre walkway with the funds that the State Bank of India has provided as part of its corporate social responsibility scheme,” said Bhaskar Gupta early last week, when he was still JU’s authorised vice-chancellor.
The university is renovating the three water bodies and laying the tactile surface with the SBI’s money.
“While beautifying the campus, we cannot forget the requirements of our visually impaired students who are an integral part of the campus,” said Dipak Kesh, a JU professor engaged with the initiative.
Monjit Kumar Ram of the Forum for Students with Disability (FSD) said they had demanded such pathways around the campus.
“By laying the pathway for a certain distance, the JU authorities have partly accepted our demands. It would be ideal if the university could lay the walkway all over the campus. Vehicles run at a high speed on this campus. This poses a challenge for students like us. If the entire stretch of the campus could have this facility, this would address our concerns entirely,” said Ram, who is pursuing PhD in Bengali.
In November, two JU students developed a Braille map of the campus to help visually impaired students identify various locations on the premises.
The map was installed on the ground floor of the UG arts building next to gate No. 4 of the university.