Proposed public park turns into dumping yard in Kupwara
■ Wasim Mir
Kupwara: Negligence of tourism department has turned a proposed public park at frontier district of north Kashmir’s Kupwara district into a dumping yard.
The public park, constructed by tourism department in the heart of town has been turned into a Garbage dumping site with people alleging that the concerned department has failed to maintain the park.
Constructed in 2010 with a cost of around Rs 25 lakh by Lolab-Bungus-Drungyari Tourism Development Authority (LBDTDA), the park, according to locals, is continuously being damaged by some miscreants who vandalize prized Deodar furniture of its huts, costly hoarding, iron railings, benches and dump garbage in the said park to convert it into a garbage dumping site.
Social Activist Adv. Umar Farooq told our GMK, that he sometimes was regular visitor of this park, even the local residents were spending their time in the said park, after their hectic workload, but the negligence of local authorities stopped families to visit the park. He however appeal the local administration to maintain and manage the park properly for the sake of families.
“The benches are being used as wickets by local youth who regularly organised cricket tournaments in this park. Over the past couple of years, even poultry farms used this park for their own will adding foul smell to its environs,” locals said.
“This was the only public park in Kupwara town catering a population of around 20,000. We voluntarily gave our land for its construction just to get a recreational place for district headquarters. But due to lackadaisical approach of Tourism Department, it has become a virtual playground, Garbage dumping site and poultry farm,” they added.
“It is unfortunate that being Kupwara a district headquarter, officials have not paid attention to maintain the park, a group of students told GMK.”
Some prominent citizens of town told GMK, that the lackadaisical attitude of authorities towards maintaining this old park suffers us, if the authorities will maintain this park it will become the best place to refresh and to spend quality time with friends and family here, they added.
Meanwhile m, the locals urged authorities either to convert this park into a permanent garbage dump or take measures to maintain the park.
