Lush green grass, flowers, swings, benches — these are the images that most commonly conjure up when one talks about a public garden. Sadly, in Chennai, most of them, are found dry due to water shortage. Residents claim there is a lot that needs to be improved when it comes to safety and cleanliness of the parks.
There are 632 parks in the city and the smallest one measures close to 700 square metres and the biggest is close to 5,000 square metres. There are a couple of them, like the Anna Nagar Tower Park, that is spread across acres.
“The park on Turn Bulls Road, Kotturpuram, was previously lush green. Now it has become dry, thanks to improper maintenance. The trees are not trimmed properly. Since there is no grass in the children’s play area, kids get injured on falling down,” said M. Keerthana, a resident of Nandanam who visits the park on weekends.
The condition of Sir Thyagaraya Park on T.H. Road in Washermanpet is no different. Dry grass and broken play equipment greet the visitors.
“There is no water supply, hence the grass is dry. The swings and see-saws are all broken and have not been replaced. Visitors litter the place,” said P. Devadas, resident of Tondiarpet, a regular visitor.
Residents complained that Chennai Corporation park in Zone 4 was lacking in basic facilities. “It is very dry. Children play in the dust and it is very unhealthy for them. Senior citizens also want proper seating facility with good lighting,” M. Manikandan, a resident of Tondiarpet. People who use the Corporation park in VGP layout, Palavakkam, said that it is not maintained properly either.
Residents have complaints about toilet facility, dry condition of the park and cleanliness.
“Earlier, maintenance was undertaken by the Corporation directly and the park was worth the visit. After it was handed over to the private contractors, the situation became worse,” said L.P.Subramanian, secretary, VGP Golden Seaview Residents Welfare Association.
Safety a major concern
Apart from problems related to water shortage, residents are concerned about safety aspects in the parks. In many parks, broken liquor bottles are found in the corners and walkers complain of people gaining entry into the park even when it is closed. “Transgenders harass visitors, especially couples, in Anna Nagar Tower Park and it is a major problem, said P. N. Balamuralikrishnan, a regular visitor, calling for posting of security guards in all parks.
In Mylapore’s Nageshwara Rao park, residents stress on the need for CCTV cameras. “Its a relatively big park and there have been complaints of bike thefts earlier. It will be better to install CCTV cameras inside as it will serve as a deterrent,” said V. Venkatramani, a resident of Royapettah High Road.
Many residents want the parks and the surroundings to be clean. “Most often cars and buses are parked around the parks. People urinate on the compound wall and consume alcohol using the vehicles as cover. The Corporation should take steps to put an end to this,” said M. Srinivasan, a resident of Mylapore.
Meanwhile, Chennai Corporation officials said that they have set up sewage treatment plants in eight parks and have been using the treated water for gardening. “The parks are dry due to water shortage. We are trying our best to keep them green,” said an official.
‘CCTVs, loss of pricacy’
He said that CCTV cameras have been installed at the entrance of all new parks. “People are objecting to CCTV cameras being installed inside. They complain about loss of privacy and the possibility of misuse of footage,” he added.
