PIONEER EDGE NEWS SERVICE/Dehradun
Despite the government spending public money on developing parks across the city, the lack of regular maintenance has left many public parks in poor condition. The child-friendly park located at Parade Ground opposite the Tibetan Market in Dehradun, developed under the City Investments to Innovate, Integrate and Sustain (CITIIS) programme under the Smart Cities mission has become overrun with bushes, broken play equipment and poor sanitation, making it difficult for visitors to use the facilities. The CITIIS programme was launched to create child-friendly and inclusive public spaces in the city.
The park has seating arrangements, children’s play equipment and landscaped areas but poor upkeep has left it covered in bushes and weeds. Several swings are broken while benches and seating spaces are surrounded by overgrown grass. As a result, children have little space to play and elderly visitors find it difficult to sit and spend time in the park.
The park also lacks basic amenities such as dustbins, leading many visitors to dump garbage on the premises. The waste often remains uncleared for days. Dry leaves and fallen tree branches are also scattered across the park. During the monsoon, the accumulated waste and stagnant water create favourable conditions for mosquito breeding, raising hygiene concerns. Visitor Khushi Chauhan, who had come to the park, said that some swings were broken and the seating areas were covered with large bushes. She said that the park is filled with mosquitoes, making it impossible for visitors to sit there comfortably even for a few minutes. Visitors questioned the purpose of developing parks if they are not maintained regularly. She said that this is not a rare case as several parks across Dehradun suffer from poor upkeep and irregular cleaning despite public funds being spent on their development.
Speaking on the issue, Dehradun municipal commissioner Alok Kumar Pandey said that the parks will be cleaned soon. He said that dedicated teams will be formed to ensure regular maintenance and upkeep of parks across the city.
