Bagh-e-Bahaar 01 indira park

Indira Park is located in Domalguda and is managed by the GHMC urban biodiversity wing. The park is spread across 65 acres and has sandalwood trees, date palms, fruit trees and the Keuvda plantations. The park also houses special attractions such as a rose garden, rock garden, shade garden, palm trees, skating area, a pond and several waterfalls and boating facility.

Indira Park is a hotspot for children and families. Every morning, it is buzzing with about 2,000 walkers from neighborhood colonies. It is open to the public all through the years. There is no entry fee for morning walkers between 5 am to 8 am and later Rs 5 is charged. Approximately 1,500 people visit the park daily and the number goes up to 2,000 on public holidays.

There are 21 security personnel manning the park across three shifts and has around 40 garden keepers who work on a contract basis. The park contains an award-winning rock garden designed and is founded by Subrata Basu, local commissioner of customs and excise duty in 2001.

History

Indira Park is dedicated to the Late Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. Its foundation was laid in 1975 by the then President of India Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed and was opened to the public in 1978. In 2001, a rock garden inside the park was planned in an area of two acres which was completed subsequently.

A man-made desert and purification of the lake within the park was done to enable a boating facility to the visitors to assist the park in its promotion as a tourist destination.

Problems

YV Swamy Rao, a regular walker for the past 20 years, said, “The development of the park has stopped and its maintenance is poor. Fountains are not working for a long time and the entire pond water is polluted and strewn with trash, emanating an obnoxious smell. The stray dog menace is pitiable and the government’s decision to use the pond for Ganesh nimarjanam is not feasible. Once the park was the talk of the city for a breathing space but it has now lost its glory.

By:CH SAIBABA