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Not the old self: The park reopened this April after 12 years. The users miss the original green cover and want more facilities.
| Photo Credit: M. SRINATH
Happy squeals abound from the children’s play area at the Thiru Vi Ka Park in Shenoy Nagar on a weekday evening, as children slide, climb, see-saw, swing and bang enthusiastically on a giant drum-cum-xylophone. Parents and grandparents watch indulgently from a bench that surrounds the section, as even the damp sand after the morning’s rain does not deter these pleasure-seekers.
Tumultuous past
It’s hard to remember that the 8.8-acre park has a somewhat tumultuous past: involving protests, a case in court, the inspection by a Madras High Court judge, and numerous delays in its restoration and opening.
In 2011, the park was shut down as Chennai Metro Rail Ltd. (CMRL) took over the space to build its underground Shenoy Nagar station. The park was supposed to be reopened in three years, but actually only opened this April, six years after the Metro line became operational.
A protest
The intervening 12 years saw a protest by residents who wanted their lung space back, as well as an inspection by Justice M. Dhandapani and, this August, an inspection by the Chennai district green committee, alongside a five-member committee constituted by the court.
The primary problem has been the lack of adequate green cover: the park had 328 trees before CMRL took over and felled 242, while translocating an additional 56. Though CMRL says it has planted 4,800 saplings through the Miyawaki method and nearly 600 other saplings, for old-time park users, it’s not the same.
“It was very sad to watch the trees being cut down. It used to be like a green forest, with so many birds. Now, however, there is not much shade,” said Subhashini Rao, a 74-year-old resident and regular walker at the park.
Another problem, says Mrs. V. Padmanabhan, also a senior citizen, is that the benches do not have backrests, and since they are granite, they are scalding to sit on in the summer. A gazebo with seating that could also provide cover during the rain would be useful, the walkers said.
Only one swing
The children’s area could do with more equipment, says a park-user, pointing out that there is only one infant swing, which invariably draws a crowd, especially at weekends.
But, despite these drawbacks, the park, restored at a cost of ₹18 crore, is clean and well-maintained. A large signboard at the entrance lists the facilities, which include a beach volleyball court, basketball court, open air theatre, reading zone and a yoga pavilion.
The pathways are wide, and the saplings lining the sides are labelled for the botanically minded.
Even as it grows dark, the dull thud of badminton shuttlecocks hitting racquets continues to echo, as teenage boys play an energetic game, while at yet another section, trainee skaters show off their skills. Men, serious about their exercise, tread the 8-shaped walkway, next to a tucked-away space with an open-air gym. Regular users relax in conversation, watching the musical fountain light up.
As Ms. Rao says, the park provides a necessary breathing space: it is also somewhere one can meet people, catch up with old acquaintances and, perhaps, make new friends as well.
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