A year after Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) made the footpath along the high footfall area near Horniman Circle Garden in Fort, as part of a project to enhance walkability and create seamless pedestrian-friendly passages, the portion of this footpath with tactile tiles which are meant to help and guide persons with blindness outside the BMC’s A Ward office on Shahid Bhagat Singh Road has been broken due to parking of two-wheelers. This portion adjoins the headquarters of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and other government and defence organisation buildings.

About the project

The tiles were made as part of BMC’s heritage cell project undertaken before the monsoon season in 2024 at various locations in A Ward. Unique features were added to this footpath, such as a seamless heritage look along with tactile tiles to aid the differently-abled. This tiling project was initiated as part of the larger “pedestrian first” policy of the BMC, mooted back in 2016-17. The pilot project by the heritage cell was done on MG Road in A ward in 2017, and subsequently it has been replicated on several other roads in the Fort area.