Morning walkers get cold feet despite relaxations, Chandigarh parks remain empty

The administration’s recent flip flops about permission for morning walks has likely discouraged regular walkers from taking a chance

Even as curbs were lifted in the city and morning walkers were officially allowed to venture out for their routines from 7 am onward, most big parks and gardens in the city wore a deserted look, with only a handful of walkers visible.

Even though curbs were lifted and walkers in Chandigarh were allowed to venture out, Shanti Kunj in Sector 16, on Monday, remained bereft of the multitudes who frequent the place for a walk. (Keshav Singh /HT photo)

Rose Garden and the adjoining Shanti Kunj are popular destinations with morning walkers. One lap on the jogging track of the Rose Garden, about 2,200 metres, is one of the longest in the city. However, both wore an empty look on Monday even as the clock struck 8 am.

Principal of Sector 39-C Government Model Senior Secondary School, Meenakshi Aneja, who was out for a stroll with her husband at Shanti Kunj said it felt good to be out again. “We are routine walkers here and had been walking in the drive way of our home in Sector 16 for the past few weeks,” she said.

Three senior citizens were spotted sitting together in Rose Garden. Of the three, Ashok Malhotra, who is a tax consultant and Iqbal Singh, who is a retired government official, were engaged in a debate about who was the first one to enter the garden after the curfew. “We are a group of eight senior citizens and would take three to four rounds of the park. For the first time in 15 years our practice was interrupted for more than a month,” said Malhotra.

Several people opined that the administrations ambiguity about morning walks and the recent flip flops had discouraged many from coming out for their daily exercise. Recent rain and thunder had muddied parts of the garden due to which some people had taken a rain check.

Many regular walkers said they had also spotted Punjab director general of police (DGP) Dinkar Gupta walking here around 8 pm.

A teacher at Doon School, Ramneet, said she was glad the curfew restrictions had been lifted. “We can’t stay at home forever and have to learn to deal with Covid-19 in better ways. I had also written to UT adviser Manoj Parida about this,” she said.

While curfew restrictions were underway, police had been cracking down on morning walkers. As per police records, 213 morning and evening walkers had been booked under Section 188 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) between 23 March and 3 May over the violation.