BMC spends only 6 per cent of Rs 228 crore allocated to gardens

Mumbai does not have much to boast of in terms of play grounds and now thanks to the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation BMC its parks might go down the same way The civic body which had allocated R228 crore from its annual budget to maintain and beautify gardens across the city has used a meagre six per cent of the budget mdash Rs 16 croreAt Mazgaon Garden the waterfall lies defunct while the stairs are broken PICBIPIN KOKATEThe BMC declared the budget it used till December 2013 which revealed this embarrassing sum spent by the Garden department Moreover this allocation will lapse in two months if not utilised This is the second year in a row wherein the garden funds have been underutilised by the department In 2013 a lack of contractors to maintain gardens was cited as a reason by the BMCStunted growthJoint Municipal Commissioner SS Shinde who is in charge of the cityrsquos gardens said ldquoSome gardens are under development and we are yet to receive their bills Once we get those chances are that the budget used by the Garden department will go up We will also know what can be done in this matterrdquoMumbai has 1052 gardens spread across the city most of which are in terrible shape There are about 3500 open spaces in the city which are reserved as recreation grounds and playgrounds parks and gardens However more than 2000 of these spaces have been encroached upon Since two years provisions have been made for the development of Estuarian Park at Mahim creek for instance but the project is yet to see the light of dayBroken play equipment at the Brihanmumbai Mahanagarpalika Garden near Anushakti Nagar colony PICSAYED SAMEER ABEDIAbysmally low figuresNiranjan Shetty tree authority member of the BMC from the Bharatiya Janata Party said ldquoThis is a very low figure It will be impossible to use the amount in just two months I had suggested that the civic body give money to the corporators so we could use it in our respective wards and develop gardensrdquoDevendra Amberkar opposition leader BMC said ldquoThere are about eight plots in my area which are yet to be developed I have been speaking to the administration for more than two years but nothing has been done The BMC could not rope in contractors for a long time The money has been wastedrdquoGanpatrao Ambre Maharaj Garden at Andheri West is in a bad shape PICSATYAJIT DESAIBad examplesAmong the many gardens which lie neglected is the Mazgaon Garden near Dockyard Road station The garden which overlooks the Expressway is rather unsafe at night The security is inadequate tiles and staircases are broken and the waterfall at the entrance is defunct Locals often spot individuals indulging in substance abuseThe story is not very different at Ganpatrao Ambre Maharaj Garden at Andheri West near Navrang Cinema Worse it has been developed twice over the past two years but continues being in bad shape Play equipment for children is in bad shape and the artificial well in the garden is filled with paver blocksThe Brihanmumbai Mahanagarpalika Garden near Anushakti Nagar colony is yet another space which faces neglect The BMC delayed its contracts and as a result garbage often accumulates in the garden while the play area lies dysfunctionalCitizen speakAnandini Thakoor an activist from Khar who has helped manage many gardens in her area by utilising resident association funds claimed that the civic body is badly managed ldquoThe BMC wakes up to maintain gardens only after many complaints pile up If they have the budget why doesnrsquot the BMC just do their work instead of waiting for complaintsrdquo she askedGR Vora an activist from central Mumbai echoed the sentiment ldquoThe condition of Five Gardens at Wadala was improved after several complaints We have to wait for the smallest work of maintenance because the BMC claims they lack contractors They should start utilising funds rather than sitting on issuesrdquo