BENGALURU: Gita Balakrishnan, a 55-year-old architect, researcher, and educator, walked alone for 335 km from Chennai to Bengaluru for the cause of Universal Design and Accessibility — focusing on raising awareness about creating inclusive environments for individuals of all ages, abilities and backgrounds.
This was her fourth walk since she started it in February 2022. As she neared Bengaluru, the last 5 km lap was from the Spastics Society of Karnataka, an NGO that works for individuals with developmental disabilities, to Cubbon Park. From there, a commemorative walk was held with several disabled individuals to the Museum of Art and Photography (MAP), which is accessible for people with disabilities.
Gita told TNIE that after the first walk, her learning was consolidated into six broad areas, which she now works on: Design and accessibility, awareness of construction workers — acknowledging them, making design accessible to rural areas, environment and infrastructure — impact on pedestrians, traditional wisdom and empowering architects all over India.
Highlighting the reduced walkability of Bengaluru, she explained that she has lived in the city for quite a long time and that post 9.30 pm, it is “quite impossible to walk comfortably.” She added that traffic and different construction works have hampered pedestrian wellbeing. “It is difficult to find continuous pathways. There are also bollards on footpaths to stop bikers from riding on footpaths which end up restricting wheelchairs.” She asserted that a balance needs to be found to address these challenges and added that a city’s happiness quotient can be correctly defined through only pedestrian well-being.
Gita not only walks but also creates content on the basics of design and architecture for students to imbibe inclusivity in their designs. “We are doing a programme in Maharashtra where we are getting construction workers to be instructors through a video series. Students of architecture colleges are recording videos on construction sites, explaining to us how a window should be fixed or how flooring tiles should be fixed,” Gita adds. She also makes it a point to hold various formal and informal interactions on her walks to create awareness of the issue.