Kolkata Municipal Corporation ponders reopening of parks after demand from morning walkers

KOLKATA: The Kolkata Municipal Corporation brass may respond to the growing demand from citizens to allow access to parks for exercise, breathe fresh air and experience some joy amidst the gloom.
Sources in the civic body said discussions were underway to consider reopening the parks for three hours in the morning, possibly from 5am to 8am.

The parks have been shut since early April when Covid cases began to rise.At the time, there were protests against the decision as people felt the parks were the safest place citizens, particularly the elderly, could go to. The demand had become muted when cases spiked towards April-end, prompting the state government to announce restrictions.
With Covid cases now on the wane, there is a renewed demand for reopening of the parks. “We are getting frequent requests from citizens to open parks located close to their neighbourhoods as they now want to resume their morning walk. We have taken up the matter with senior officials at the headquarters seeking their advice before taking any steps in this direction,” said a KMC borough official.
Samrat Chatterjee, a retired government officer and a resident of Monoharpukur, lamented that parks in the locality were out of bounds. “I have been a regular visitor to Deshapriya Park for the past two decades. I was delighted when the KMC opened the gates of the parks in November last year after keeping them shut for over seven months. Now again I am confined at home. It takes a toll on my health,” Chatterjee said.
Bonani Kakkar of PUBLIC, an NGO that works for improvement in the environment, welcomed the KMC proposal. “The pandemic has affected people’s mental health. Remaining confined to home is leading to depression. If we can walk under the sky and see trees around us, it can be a great healer,” she said.