Bringing underwater experience to the visually-challenged, Accessible Science Corner unveiled in Chennai

A sea of blue invites you to the Accessible Science Corner at the Periyar Science and Technology Centre in Chennai with corals, silicone dolphin and 3D model of fishes. This corner enables visually-impaired people to experience and understand the underwater world.

Inaugurated by former Chief Justice of India D.Y. Chandrachud on Monday (October 6, 2025), the centre offers visually-impaired persons an immersive experience of the underwater world. “Museums around the world are inaccessible for persons with disabilities. While some could be made accessible, the rest can not be made accessible. Further, underwater is one of the things that persons with disabilities might not get to experience. So we decided to showcase that,” said Subisha K.R., a research associate at the Accessibility Research Centre (ARC), IIT Madras.

Created by ARC, Accessible Science Corner is an effort to make museums accessible to persons with disabilities. The small room starts with the introduction to the world with continents and the ocean labelled in braille. The continents are marked in rough texture to differentiate. It then moves on to the 3D model of various fishes including star fish, sea anemone, sea cucumber which are made in silicone before explaining the various reefs that are available in the ocean.

“We had planned to make the entire structures in 3D from our IIT labs following the guidelines of Braille Authority of North America but we soon realised that the sharp edges, which might be missed by an able person, would cause fear in a visually-impaired person. So, we also engaged sculptors for some of the models,” said Muhammad Sadiq T, Research Associate at the ARC.

But the most loved installation at the Centre has been the silicone large-sized dolphin. “The children loved it. They know where the fin is now, the dolphin’s mouth. So much joy it brings them,” added Ms Subisha.

The Centre has tactile tiles, dolby atmos sound for the immersive experience and also extended reality (ER) sets for a personalised experience. To make it truly accessible, ARC also revamped the ramps leading to the Periyar Science and Technology Centre as per guidelines.

Next, ARC plans to make the centre compatible with other disabilities too. “We are also planning to set up summary corners in every museum in Tamil Nadu so that persons with disabilities can visit the corner to understand what the museum holds with specifics even if they can’t access the entire thing,” said Ms Subisha.