Staff Correspondent
Port Blair, Aug 22: Three years ago PBMC had constructed a Park at Dairy Farm, Machi Basti to facilitate the citizens of the town with a place to walk, jog and relax. The park is precisely located near the Om Sakthi Temple at Dairy Farm. The park was made with great efforts but soon after its construction the residents of the area started using, better to say misusing, the parks for their personal and professional purposes.
Soon people who came there to relax started witnessing clothes drying on the fence and on the walkways. After some days the residents reported seeing fish drying inside the boundaries of the park and the smell made it almost impossible for them to walk and jog and the stinky air of the park started making people sick.
It became really annoying for the joggers when they saw the pathway covered with fishing nets which was kept there for snorting and slowly and slowly the park became a private property of the fishermen of the area and other people started ignoring the park.
People have not only encroached the park but also the vacant area on both sides of the road and constructed hutments for storing their ice boxes, nets and other accessories. Sources also informed us that these hutments are also used for selling illegal liquor. It was also reported that at present there are almost 20 such hutments which sells illegal liquor in between the area from Sita Ram Temple to Tirupathi Temple. Andaman Sheekha tried to contact the Chairman of PBMC to get a comment from his side but even after repeated attempt, the Chairman was unavailable to comment.
Public living in the area alleges that such situation is nothing but a glaring example of poor management and negligence. Hope the PBMC Chairman will get some time someday to pay a surprise visit and see the ground realities himself.
