Two years after the Chennai Corporation decided to keep parks open from 5 a.m. to 9 p.m., personnel manning some of the parks have started restricting visitors during the day.
On Saturday, family members of candidates appearing for the Teachers’ Recruitment Board (TRB) examination in T. Nagar schools were waiting in the nearby Panagal Park. But, they were asked to leave the premises.
Visitors were forced to leave even after a few of them protested the closure of the park. Perambur resident Edwin Prakash said, “My wife was writing the TRB exam at a nearby school. I took my kids to Panagal Park to keep them occupied. At 11 a.m., we were forced to leave the park.”
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When contacted, Chennai Corporation officials said their instructions were clear: parks would have to remain open during the day.
“Some contractors who carry out maintenance of parks reportedly try to reduce the number of visitors to avoid damage to the facility. But that is not acceptable. Contractors cannot prevent visitors from entering the parks during the mandated hours,” said an official of the Corporation.
The civic body has allowed its 443 parks to remain open through the day to enable residents to walk, play and picnic at the leisure spots.
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A number of residents’ associations had appealed to the Corporation to change park timings and improve infrastructure. But pilferage by some visitors continues to bother the personnel manning the parks.