Delhi District Park....Voice from the Heart.....

Visitors to the District Park (next to the Deer Park) in southern Delhi must have noticed the motley coloured flowers of various species donning the Park like a bride during the past three months or so this year.

Seldom have we observed in earlier years the plants, flowerbeds, walk-paths and grassy areas being watered as regularly and also perhaps as religiously as is being done this year. Trees and hedges are being trimmed to shape. Fresh grass carpets are being laid out to cover barren areas. We also see footballers and cricketers enjoying themselves in allocated zones. It's a treat to see young Subhash Pawar so energetic in looking after maintenance of the Park.

In short, one registers a system in the Park's planning and its designing. Needless to say, that such work requires manpower and we also register increase in the workers-contingent, which is mandatory for any improvement and maintenance project.

Thanks are naturally due to those authorities who have deemed it fit to turn the District Park into a Model Park. Yet a lot needs to be done though.....

A comment, however, on the shoddy work that is done almost every year on laying of tiles for the walkers, repairing and painting of the ledges around the lake, and, keeping the lake water clean etc. etc.

Folks, go and have a look at the paint work done on the ledges around the lake and on boundary markers along the walk-paths. Boys and girls of age 8 and 12 were observed to have been given brushes and literally "coloured-water" to paint the ledges. These children have absolutely no idea what they should do and what they did do. The look of the painted areas today is "back to square one", viz., grey zones are already visible under the white or yellow paint......and this after not more than three months or so.

SUCH APPROACH TO QUALITY WORKMANSHIP IS A PITIABLE EXAMPLE OF THE ATTITUDE OF THE CONTRACTORS WHO UNDERTAKE THESE PROJECTS AND LACK OF QUALITY CONTROL CULTURE ON THE PART OF THOSE WHO ALLOT SUCH PROJECTS. This must change.....

Now since we are on the subject, I would like to touch upon one more point. Every other day we read in the local newspapers that people have died in the process of cleaning underground sewage pipes etc. The past three days I've been witness to two young boys, with car tyres around their waists, diving into the muddy-green-water of the Haus Khas Lake...which by Jove is polluted, observing its dark green colour and the stink it produces.... collecting broken tree twigs and depositing these into a cloth/plastic hammock. Later, these twigs are transported by hand from the hammock on to the shore. What happens to these twigs when they dry out is anybody's guess.....Don't we learn from such situations, or, do we not want to learn ?

IN MY OPINION, THIS "HISTORICAL", but today reduced to a STINKING, POLLUTED LAKE, COULD BE TURNED INTO A TOURISTIC PARADISE, IF SOMEONE PUT THEIR HEART AND SOUL BEHIND IT. Let's ask Subhash Pawar for his thoughts !!

I must add that during the Spring period this year, the area of south Delhi including Lutyens zone has looked pretty like never before. A certain doubt naturally shadows the mind though, that this was perhaps only because of the Voting Year.

Yes, last not least, I cannot relinquish the conviction in my mind that until and unless we, the Delhi-ites, resolve in our own minds to turn our City into a model Capital, nothing tangible will happen. It's we the Dilliwallahs who need to self-motivate our own selves and also our fellow-denizens, if we wish to put our Delhi on an international pedestal of "clean cities"......

Yours truly..... more