Wait for city’s new lung space gets longer

Children play area of City Central Park being developed by VUDA in Visakhapatnam.

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Estimates are still being prepared for the Central plaza and fountain, South Food Court, bamboo garden, internal lighting, transformer etc.

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With several key designs and estimates yet to be finalised and slightly more than half of the estimated Rs.35 crore spent, the Dr YSR-VUDA Central Park will take nearly another year for completion.

In the amusement area the design is yet to be finalised. Estimates are still being prepared for the Central plaza and fountain, South Food Court, bamboo garden, internal lighting, transformer etc.

Water supply is not yet in place and the groundwater availability is poor.

The compound wall all around the 20.42 acre park, the external jogging track and most of the work related to it and parking, cycling track, inner path way, underground cabling are among the works that have been completed in two phases so far spending Rs.11.84 crore. The children’s play area and some equipment is also in place.

Two toilets blocks, amphitheatre, a bridge over the cycle track - costing Rs.2.24 crore - are scheduled for completion by the end of May. Toilets for physically challenged are part of the toilet blocks. Like with many other projects in the city, Hudhud threw everything out of gear.

“Though successive vice-chairmen have seen to it that most of the trees are retained, Hudhud caused a lot of damage,” says Chief Engineer B. Jayarami Reddy.

For instance, the amphitheatre was planned between two trees but a branch of one of the trees was truncated by Hudhud, said Executive Engineer V. Bhavani Sankar.

Next to the amphitheatre event lawns will be developed.

The then Chief Minister K. Rosaiah laid the foundation for the park in the Old Central Jail land in April 2010 and the cost estimated then was Rs.5 crore.

Source: The Hindu, 1st May 2015