Anyone visiting the Social Justice Department compound at Vellimadukunnu cannot miss the Gender Park. With its majestic old building that was artistically renovated recently and an acre of road frontage, the institution stands out among the others like the Children’s Home and Mahila Mandiram. But, only five months after its inauguration, the institution remains closed.
The Gender Park, the first of its kind in the country, and a brainchild of former Minister for Social Justice M.K. Muneer, was inaugurated amid much fanfare by President Pranab Mukherjee in February this year. The plan was to have a Gender Institute that would focus on learning, research and capacity development, as part of supporting the efforts of the State and Central governments in ensuring an inclusive society. The Gender Institute would cover issues pertaining to all genders as per the gender and transgender policies of the State government.
The park is spread over 15,000 sq.ft. and includes the renovated ancient building and a modern state-of-the-art building, a vast theatre-cum-convention centre, and an amphitheatre designed by architect Anita Chaudhary. The two main buildings cost around Rs.30 crore. The theatre-cum-convention centre was to be the biggest in south India. The Gender Park also has rooms that could be occupied by artistes or writers for their creative pursuits.
However, the whole facility has never been used since its inauguration. Though the two main buildings have been completed, the adjacent convention centre is yet to be completed.
Gender Park CEO P.T.M. Sunish had earlier announced that the institution would host the international conference of transgenders in 2017. He was not available for comment on the present state of disuse of the facility.
