Could BMC at least give us well-kept open spaces?

The children’s play area at the Jari Mari Udyan in Anand Nagar, Dahisar. Pics/Anurag Ahire

A garden in Dahisar renovated in 2015 is already in terrible condition owing to poor maintenance by the BMC, locals claimed in a report in this paper. The civic authorities took note of the report and will be investigating, after which repairs and an upgrade are on the cards.

In our report, several people spoke out about the condition of the garden, and some pictures featured within the report showed unclean spots and dangerous dilapidation within. The play area and open gym were in ruins, people said.

There were broken railings falling onto the walking track and non-functional lighting. What is disappointing is that lights were last repaired in 2022, but many poles are damaged.

The toilets are in poor condition and the drinking water area and toilets are close together, creating an unhygienic situation.

This though must show us that there are other gardens that are in a decrepit state and need attention. There are other such spaces in the city, which are in poor state and need attention pronto. They may not make the news like this one has, but local leaders, authorities can visit different areas, or vigilant citizens alert those at the top about the abysmal state of affairs.

While one is happy that this garden will now hopefully be in a better state than it is, action should be across the city. Moreover, maintenance must be consistent and complaints quickly attended to.

It is no use talking about the Olympics, medals and hosting international events when our basics like open spaces are hard to come by and the skeletal gardens we have are poorly kept and need to be highlighted in the press for any change. When the first rung of the sporting ladder is rickety and in danger of coming off, then climbing higher is practically impossible.