State of Parks: Shaheed Udham Singh Nagar park in Jalandhar a victim of official apathy, neglect

Aakanksha N Bhardwaj

Jalandhar, July 3

In a park at Shaheed Udham Singh Nagar, the statue of martyr Shaheed Udham Singh stands amidst the chaos that has spread due to the overgrown grass and a non-working fountain with weeds grown inside.

The park has been in shambles and no one bothers to look after the place where Shaheed Udham Singh’s statue lies.

A visit reveals that the park has been in a neglected condition since long. Swings are broken, there is filth everywhere and old uprooted trees can be found almost in every corner of the park. No one can dare to enter the park which should have been properly maintained by the Municipal Corporation. Also, there is a garbage dump near the park which paints grimy picture.

“When there is a huge statue of a martyr, one would expect it to be well maintained, but the situation here is different and horrifying,” said a local resident.

Jagdish Raja, former mayor of the city in whose ward the park is, said work order for the maintenance of the park was released months ago, but nothing had been done yet.

“It is true that this park is in bad condition and people are going to other parks for recreation, but we are trying to do something for this park too. There are some bad elements too who enter the park which has made the situation worse,” he said.

Horrifying situation

When there is a huge statue of a martyr, one would expect it to be well maintained, but the situation here is different and horrifying. A resident

He said every other park in the ward was in good condition. “We would want work on this park to start soon and would pursue the matter too,” he added.

Cries for attention

• Swings are broken, there is filth everywhere and old uprooted trees can be found almost in every corner of the park.
• There is also a garbage dump near the park, which paints grimy picture.