It’s nearly a month since the foundation stone was laid for the Rs. 36 lakh park-cum-indoor stadium facility on OSR (open space reservation) land in AIBEA (All-India Bank Employees Association) Nagar in Mogappair West of Anna Nagar. There is however no development worth wiring home about.
According to Corporation officials, encroachments have to be cleared before work could begin. Besides, a portion of the site is taken up by a shed constructed for workers of a storm water drain (SWD) project, being carried out in a neighbourhood nearby. Contractor C. Venu says, “The soil that was dug up for SWD work is also dumped on the site. Only when all these are removed, can we begin the work.”
“We have been writing to the Corporation to resume the work but so far there have been only promises,” said P.N. Srinivasan, president, AIBEA Nagar Association.
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Spread over 930 sq. mt., the OSR land was transferred to the then Ambattur Municipality through a gift deed in 1997. After Ambattur merged with the Corporation, the land came under the civic body’s control. AIBEA Nagar was developed by the members of Tamil Nadu Bank Employees’ Welfare Society when they settled in the neighbourhood two decades ago.
Now, with the space lying idle, many have started misusing it. During the day, many come and squat there. After dusk, drunkards create nuisance. Of late, passers-by have turned the park into an open toilet. Parents don’t allow their children anywhere near the park for fear of venomous reptiles found within the overgrown bushes. The kids instead play on the busy road. Also, waste and construction debris are dumped on the site.
On their part, Corporation officials said that as per plan, a compound wall and a tiled footpath inside the designated park area would be done in the next three months. Thereafter, the project would be handed over to the Parks Department for landscaping.
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“There was a delay in starting the project but work on setting up borewells to source water for the project will begin in a few days. Once the project is completed, the Parks Department will maintain the facility,” said a Corporation official.