Bengaluru: Days after the Supreme Court declared the Right to Walk on safe footpaths a Fundamental Right, residents of Rajarajeshwari Nagar and Greenpeace India launched a symbolic protest highlighting Bengaluru’s crumbling pedestrian infrastructure.
As part of the campaign, volunteers marked broken, missing and encroached footpaths with yellow ‘Crime Scene’ tape carrying the message, “Constitutional Right Denied Here”, drawing attention to what they described as the city’s failure to provide safe spaces for pedestrians.
Protest follows Supreme Court ruling
The demonstration comes in the wake of the Supreme Court’s landmark judgment on June 19, which ruled that the right to walk safely on designated footpaths flows from Articles 19(1)(d) and 21 of the Constitution.
The court also held that whenever a road exists, civic authorities have a corresponding responsibility to construct and maintain safe footpaths, placing pedestrian rights above the convenience of motorised traffic.
Unsafe footpaths remain a major concern
According to Greenpeace India’s Bengaluru Rising campaign, Bengaluru continues to be one of the country’s least walkable major cities despite its rapid urban growth.
The organisation cited a 2025 assessment which found that only 2.9 km of usable footpaths existed across 1,671 km of arterial and sub-arterial roads. Residents frequently encounter broken pavements, missing footpaths, construction debris, parked vehicles and other encroachments, forcing them to walk on busy roads.
Data also showed that pedestrians accounted for nearly 28 per cent of road fatalities in Bengaluru during 2025, with 218 pedestrian deaths recorded by the end of November.
Call for pedestrian-friendly streets
Campaigners urged the Greater Bengaluru Authority (GBA) and other civic agencies to treat footpaths as essential public infrastructure rather than an afterthought.
They said improving walkability would encourage more people to use public transport, reduce traffic congestion and make the city safer and more inclusive for all road users.
Residents also stressed that reclaiming footpaths should involve removing all forms of obstruction while ensuring well-planned spaces for regulated street vending.