pro-poor, pro-nature & pro-women.
Touch
and Smell (for the Visually Impaired)
| "Kindness is the language which the deaf can hear and the blind can see" |
| - Mark Twain |
 One
third of the world's blind population is in India and there are
an estimated ten million blind people in our country, of whom
at least a third may be children. The Touch and Smell Garden is
being established to help visually impaired children to experience
the joy of Nature and learn by exploration through the senses
of touch and smell. |
| About the Garden |
 The
Touch and Smell Garden is part of the "Every Child a Scientist"
programme, initiated in 2000 at M. S. Swaminathan Research Foundation.
The objective is to empower children of marginalized groups in
both rural and urban areas, by knowledge relating to biodiversity
and environment, with the help of information technology. This
programme is already functional at the Community Agrobiodiversity
Centre of MSSRF in Kalpetta, Wayanad District, Kerala. |
| The Garden is part of the Chennai Centre, which the Hon'ble Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, Selvi J. Jayalalithaa is inaugurating on 7th August 2002. One of the programmes in the 15 point agenda of the Hon'ble Chief Minister is special attention to the disabled. |
| About the Layout |
 The
garden is divided into four identical blocks. The main entrance
is decorated with Jasmine (Jasminum flexile), to form a natural
arch. At the entrance to the garden, the path divides into three,
and the blocks can be accessed directly by footpaths lined by
chequered tiles. Soft marble pebbles are grounded in inverted
T -shape at every corner to indicate the change in direction by
touch. There are two Braille boards at the entrance. One explains
the topography of the garden, including instructions for children
to walk around by themselves. The other board describes the garden.
In each block, soft, smaller-sized pebbles indicate the presence
of Braille boards on stands along the edge of the path. The boards
provide information about the botanical, English and local names
of the plants, family, and economic importance; as well as biodiversity
and the need for conservation. A central pergola provides a shady
resting place for children to relax. |
| About the Plants |
 The
garden has aromatic, coarse-leaved, medicinal and thorn less plants
of economic importance. The plant commonly used in Tamil Nadu
as fencing, because of its capacity to ward off intruders, Aduthoda
(Adathoda vasica) demarcates the boundary of the garden. The plant
beds contain species like Lemon Basil (O. gratissimum), Common
Rue (R. graveolens), Adigam (G. sylvestre), Camphor Basil (O.
kilimandscharicum), Rosemary (R. officinalis), Patchouli (P. patchouli),
Mint (M. spicata), Thyme (T. vulgaris), and Davana (A. pallens).
In addition, there are hanging pots all along the edge of the
path, with plants like Indian Borage (C. ambionicus), Kamakasturi
(O. basilicum) and Sweet Marjoram (Majorana hortensis). A special
rough mat indicates their presence. |
| The Joy of Learning |
 This
is a garden where visually challenged children diversity of nature
and experience the wealth of the floral kingdom around us. To
facilitate the process of learning further, it is planned to have
a pre-recorded information system about the salient features of
the plant kingdom to kindle and foster the joy of learning. |