NDMC to build 78 playgrounds

There is good news for parents whose children are holed up inside homes due to lack of playfields. The New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) has decided to construct 78 playgrounds in the New Delhi area.

There is good news for parents whose children are holed up inside homes due to lack of playfields. The New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) has decided to construct 78 playgrounds in the New Delhi area. To begin with, the civic agency has already developed four playfields at Mandir Marg, Talkatora Garden, Raja Bazaar and Havloc Square.

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According to the civic agency, the Ministry of Sports and Youth Affairs is supporting NDMC in this project. NDMC chairman Parimal Rai made this announcement while unveiling its 2011-12 budget on Friday.

“Owing to the spurt in construction activities in the city, the space for playing field is shrinking. We have decided to create open spaces in our area where children will be able to play,” said Rai.

“We will be developing 78 playfields. Depending on the availability of area, we will develop them as fields for football, kho-kho, volleyball and other sports,” Rai added.

According to NDMC, the project for developing these playfields is part of the legacy of the Commonwealth Games.

“The idea behind the project is to create space for children and raise awareness about sports. The four playfields were developed by us as a pilot project. Among the others, 66 will have an area of up to half acre.,” said Anand Tiwari, NDMC spokesman.

This is the first budget of the civic agency after its reconstitution. Laying more stress on children, the NDMC plans to introduce a smart card-based e-governance system in all NDMC schools.

These cards will be given to all students and will have health status details of students, to be used in case of a emergency and their educational profile, to help assess any gaps and requirements.

The ‘school experts system’ will also aid in efficient management of mid-day meals in schools and assist students get easy access to various facilities available in schools.