RAJ KUMAR
Ranchi, Oct. 25: Spread in over 2.5-acre area near the residence of Rajya Sabha MP Deepak Prakash eleventh park of Harmu Housing Colony under ward 26 of Ranchi Municipal Corporation (RMC) area, Sardar Patel Park, is ready for inauguration.
Chief Minister Hemant Soren is expected to inaugurate the park on October 27. The park has been developed in one year after the expenditure of approximately Rs 2.5 crore by Greek Park under the supportive supervision of RMC engineers.
Two days ago a team of RMC led by the municipal commissioner inspected the park and gave final instruction.
The park has a walking track, badminton court, tennis court, food court, toilet complex, playing area for children equipped with gym items, fountain, a statue of Sardar Patel, six tensile gazebos and pergola besides benches, sliders and dustbins besides others.
Superintending engineer of RMC, Rama Shanker Ram, confirmed the development saying once the park is inaugurated, the marketing section will start work of appointing agency through tendering process to select a deserving party to run and maintain it properly.
Local councillor Arun Kumar Jha said the 12th park of the locality, Babu Kunwar Singh Park, is also in the pipeline. “I am happy to say that there is no park crisis in my ward and people residing here have a proper place for morning walk,” Jha said.
“People coming for morning walk between 5am to 8am will not be charged a single penny. The agency appointed to look after the park will be made entitled to collect a nominal fee from visitors after 8 am,” Jha said.
Old parks cry for attention
At the time when the eleventh park spread in 2.5 acres is ready for inauguration in Harmu Housing Colony under ward 26 of Ranchi Municipal Corporation, two parks developed hardly six years ago in the same locality are crying for attention.
One park is in front of Olympian Sylvanus Dungdung’s house and another is near the residence of Jharkhand High Court judge Justice S.N.Pathak.
A short visit to this park near the residence of Olympian Dungdung suggested that the grill on the boundary wall of the park has been stolen and there is no one to maintain it properly.
A locality resident said the situation came after it was named after the name of a journalist, Bodh Nath Jha. “Locality residents used to contribute to maintain the park every month but when it was named after a journalist, Bodh Nath Jha, locality residents having no idea about the person stopped paying and expected Jha’s family members residing in the same locality, to take care of the park at their expense and gradually the park became ignored,” the resident said.
A short visit to the park near the judge’s residence suggested that swings and other playing items for children in the park have come defunct. A locality resident said there is no one to open and close the park though RMC staff come here for cleanliness work. “As the park is not open for common people it is nothing more than greenery in a closed area,” the resident said.
