Design Opportunity Audit for Universal Accessibility of Taj Mahal
Design Opportunity Audit for Universal Accessibility of Taj Mahal from Pavankumar Sonkar
Design Opportunity Audit for Universal Accessibility of Taj Mahal

Who can resist the temptation of visiting Seven Wonders of the World or any other tourist spot? No,isn’t it? For any normal person with no disabilities it’s very easy to book tickets for travel,make reservation in hotel,etc. because he/she is not depending on others to execute those personal tasks. But think of a person with disabilities in any form like, blindness, dumb, lame, deaf, etc. Such a person cannot visit any tourist spot without getting help from somebody else. This means traveling is not accessible easily for a person with disabilities. To overcome such difficulties Industrial Design Department of IIT Delhi took an initiative and made a case study for a person on wheelchair, visiting Taj Mahal.

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Hotel Ramps: Problems Identified: Difficulty in maintaining equal spacing between the ramps and slippery ramp surface. Scope for Remedy: Mechanism to maintain the space between ramps and to increase the surface friction of the ramp. (Courtesy: ITC Mughal, Agra)
Hotel Ramps: Problems Identified: Ramps are steep and hence, needs the assistance from care takers while moving up & down the ramp. Scope for Remedy: Mechanism to move person on wheelchair up and down the floor as akin to escalator. (Courtesy: ITC Mughal, Agra)
Hotel Room: Problems Identified: The switch for AC mounted on the wall is too high. Scope for Remedy: The switch can be fitted at a much lower height. (Courtesy: ITC Mughal, Agra)
Hotel Room: Problems Identified: Difficulty in accessing the switch for lamp through bodystorming. Scope for Remedy: Switch can be brought under reach envelope by incorporating better positioning of the switch on a wall. (Courtesy: ITC Mughal, Agra)
Car Ingress and Engress: Problems Identified: Difficulty in transferring from wheelchair to inside the car. Scope for Remedy: Provision for accomodating the wheelchair through customization in the car interior.
Taj Mahal: Problems Identified: No railings for the ramp and also ramps are bumpy in nature. Scope for Remedy: Railings must be provided apart from reducing the bumpiness nature of the ramp. (Courtesy: Taj Mahal, Agra)
Taj Mahal: Problems Identified: Two wheel chairs cannot pass simultaneously on the pathway provided which has no safety rails on the edges. Scope for Remedy: Railings must be provided. (Courtesy: Taj Mahal, Agra)
Taj Mahal: Problems Identified: Too steep and slippery stairs. Scope for Remedy: Special arrangement like lift could be provided for the disabled instead of stairs. (Courtesy: Taj Mahal, Agra)
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Design Opportunity Audit for Universal Accessibility of Taj Mahal

Who can resist the temptation of visiting Seven Wonders of the World or any other tourist spot? No,isn’t it? For any normal person with no disabilities it’s very easy to book tickets for travel,make reservation in hotel,etc. because he/she is not depending on others to execute those personal tasks. But think of a person with disabilities in any form like, blindness, dumb, lame, deaf, etc. Such a person cannot visit any tourist spot without getting help from somebody else. This means traveling is not accessible easily for a person with disabilities. To overcome such difficulties Industrial Design Department of IIT Delhi took an initiative and made a case study for a person on wheelchair, visiting Taj Mahal.

View Website
Pavankumar Sonkar
Product Designer Pune, India