A dozen flower vendors, a vegetable market, a famous cinema theatre, a row of commercial outlets and a bunch of travel agents besides several apartment complexes and individual houses define the character of Srinagar near Rama Talkies Road.
The neighbourhood, which has been in existence since 1960, witnessed signs of development only after a decade.
Though the plots were allotted in 1962 and approved by the erstwhile Town Planning Trust, residents started constructing houses much later.
With the colony being located in the heart of the city, residents say that railway station and bus complex are just a few km away.
Employees from a number of PSUs and private establishments besides a host of businessmen form part of the busy colony.
With growing commercialisation causing inconvenience to the residents, many of them have moved out of the neighbourhood by disposing of their property.
“We bought the land for Rs.1.25 per square yard from the philanthropist and owner of Rama Talkies Pentakota Sriramulu Naidu in the year 1962. The sparsely populated area was absolutely peaceful. Today with most residential apartments being combined with business outlets, the charm of the colony is gradually fading,” says G.V.S. Murthy, retired employee of Visakhapatnam Port Trust who has been living in the colony since its inception.
Reminiscing about his earlier experience, S. Ravinder, a marine engineer who has been residing in Srinagar for the last thirty years, says, “We used to play cricket on the roads. Decades ago, the atmosphere was entirely different. Now people hardly meet and plan for any combined initiatives. If any problem crops up, we sort it out ourselves.”
Women of the colony say that issues like water problem and theft are unknown for them.
Except the theatre located close by, there is hardly any entertaining element that binds the residents of Srinagar.
