Make pavements accessible

CHENNAI: Rajiv Rajan, coordinator of the Disability Legislation Unit, South, and general secretary of EKTHA, has shot off a letter to the Commissioner of Chennai Corporation drawing his attention to the ‘inaccessible nature’ of the newly laid ‘accessible’ pavement by the civic body on Turnbulls Road near the Kotturpuram flyover.In his letter, Rajiv has even attached photos that explain why he called the freshly laid pavements inaccessible. The photos showed Rajiv, who is wheelchair bound, finding it difficult to squeeze through the delineators put up on the footpath there.In the letter, he mentions that his wheelchair is custom- made for usage during travel and is among the smallest such chairs produced. The international standard for space for the wheelchair to squeeze through is three feet or 900 mm. Through the letter, Rajiv requests the Commissioner to look into the issue and ensure that hindrances are removed from Chennai roads.