Blame game has resulted into shabby conditions of parks
Residents of Guru Amar Dass Nagar are unhappy with the shabby parks in their locality. Most of the parks in the area are in a dilapidated state with broken boundary walls, broken swings and wild growth.
Residents of Guru Amar Dass Nagar are unhappy with the shabby parks in their locality. Most of the parks in the area are in a dilapidated state with broken boundary walls, broken swings and wild growth.
People in the locality have to stroll on the colony roads due to the bad maintenance of the park. The children are also forced to play on the roads as their parents are too worried to let them play in the parks with thick shrubs which may expose them to allergies and snake bites.
Ritu, a student residing in the area said, "I love to go for my morning walks because it keeps me healthy and at the same time, I get to chat with my friends from the locality who have joined other colleges. In absence of parks, we have to walk on the roads and soon after the walk, we have to leave for our homes as there is no place to sit and pass some leisure time."
However, Prem Lata Vashisht, the local councillor said, "I am responsible for the maintenance of all the parks in my ward. There are around 15-16 park in ward no.2 and it is difficult to maintain all the parks on my own. The municipality pays `1,000 to a gardener but in absence of proper management, these people don't do their jobs."
She added, "The Resident Welfare Association (RWA) should take responsibility of managing labourers, but despite my constant efforts, very few RWAs have come forward to take up the matter. Whenever such a proposal is forwarded, all the residents turn their back, citing one excuse or the other."
Meanwhile, the parks which are being properly managed by the RWAs in the same locality are in good condition.
A resident on the condition of anonymity said that most of the RWAs were victims of ego clashes. "People do come for meetings but instead of finding solutions, most members end up blaming one another. As a result, nothing fruitful happens and the municipal corporation has also turned a blind eye," he said.
The residents blamed the municipal corporation for the dilapidated park in their locality and said that for the past one year, not a single person had been assigned by the authorities for the maintenance of the park.
Vashisht said, "It is very difficult to get contractors to repair the parks. The government sanctioned rate is rs2,400 for 100 bricks, but in open market, the price is rs5,000 for 100 bricks. Hence, no one comes forward to fill in the tenders."
In this bickering between the local councillor and the RWAs, it is the residents of the area who are suffering the brunt of ill-maintained parks which are unfit for use.