Over 15k MCD parks in Delhi, but just 42 guards, no CCTV cover; civic body seeks state government aid

MCD has approached the Delhi government to assess the feasibility of installing CCTV cameras in around 1,000 of its larger parks and deploy more security.

More than 15,000 parks, including over 1,000 bigger than an acre, but just 42 guards and not a single CCTV camera under the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) – this is the security challenge facing the civic body’s parks as it moves to strengthen safety following last week’s gang rape of a 17-year-old at Aastha Kunj.

Officials said the two measures are being prioritised after the September 21 gangrape incident. (Sanchit Khanna/ HT Photo)

Officials said the two measures are being prioritised after the September 21 incident. MCD has approached the Delhi government to assess the feasibility of installing CCTV cameras in around 1,000 of its larger parks, and the civic body is also preparing a proposal to deploy more security guards.

Lighting, security, infrastructure lapses in parks

A senior MCD official said the initial CCTV plan would focus on entry and exit points, though the larger challenge would be monitoring the resultant footage. “Initially, all the entry and exit points will be covered by cameras. But the government will have to decide the monitoring mechanism and who all will have access to this camera feed,” the official said, adding: “In two eight-hour shifts, these parks will need around 2,000 guards, for which a proposal is being prepared.”

While Lodhi Garden and Vasant Udyan had relatively fewer concerns, Sanjay Jheel, Vijay Mandal, Roshanara Bagh and Qudsia Bagh had multiple lapses that could pose safety risks to visitors.

MCD’s horticulture wing has now directed field staff across its 12 zones to prune vegetation around pathways and lighting infrastructure to improve visibility, identify dark and blind spots requiring lighting and flag parks where drug use or the presence of “anti-social elements” has been reported.

Public safety information boards

A circular issued on September 25, seen by HT, said the directions were issued in compliance with instructions from the lieutenant governor on ensuring the safety of women and children, cleanliness and a safe environment in parks.

It directed officials to ensure that entry and exit gates, seating areas, footpaths, children’s play areas and other sensitive locations remained clean, safe and adequately visible.

MCD has also mandated the installation of public safety information boards displaying safety instructions and contact details. A database will be created of parks with recurring security or maintenance problems, with officials required to record action taken on complaints and report suspicious activity or the presence of anti-social elements to police.

The challenge in securing parks

The order requires daily inspections by senior officials, known as chaudharies, weekly reviews by assistant directors and fortnightly reviews by deputy directors.

But officials said the biggest hurdle is resources. Of the 6,433 sanctioned gardener posts for municipal parks, around 67% are vacant. MCD is currently meeting part of the shortfall through about 3,000 contractual gardeners. “We are facing a financial crunch and there are not even enough gardeners. Given our resource constraints, we are unable to hire the number of guards we need, so the Delhi government will have to help us out,” a second municipal official said.

North Delhi RWA flags safety concerns

Around 90% of MCD parks are categorised as “housing area parks”, primarily serving residential neighbourhoods.

Ashok Bhasin, who heads the North Delhi Residents Welfare Federation, said 90% of MCD parks in North Delhi have no security arrangement and several streetlights are broken. “Only some larger parks have a few guards and that too is inadequate,” he added.

Officials said the challenge is particularly acute in smaller neighbourhood parks, which may be surrounded by homes but still have poorly visible corners.

“We have asked all field staff to start pruning along pathways and around lights to ensure that sight lines are clear,” the second official said.