Joggers express displeasure over entry fee at Gandhari Vanam
Forest officials say an entry of Rs 500 from a jogger per month to meet maintenance of the park, to lift garbage and other expenditures would be introduced soon
Mancherial: Morning joggers expressed displeasure over the Forest department’s decision to collect a fee to enter Gandhari Vanam, an urban park on the outskirts of Bokkalagutta village in Mandamarri mandal, abutting National Highway 363 in coming days.
Created on a sprawling 137 hectares of forest land in 2015, Gandhari Vanam is not only an urban forest park, but it is a paradise to morning joggers, fitness freaks and nature lovers from not only Mancherial town, but Kyathanpalli, Koteshwaraopalli, Kurmapalli, Thimmapur and Bokkalagutta. It has a 3-kilometer walking track meant for jogging. It is equipped with a yoga shed.
The morning joggers and aspirants of police jobs have been using the park since the inception for free of cost. The forest officials said that an entry of Rs 500 from a jogger per month to meet maintenance of the park, to lift garbage and other expenditures would be introduced soon. However, the morning joggers are shocked by the move to collect the monthly fee to jog and walk in the lung space.
Panasa Raju, an ardent jogger and councilor of ward number 10 in Kyathanpalli municipality said that he had brought this issue to the notice of Chennur MLA Dr Vivek who assured to take steps to cancel the fee by speaking to officials of the Forest department. Morning joggers could not afford to pay the fee, considering weak financial background, he reasoned.
Raju said that he submitted representation to the municipal commissioner seeking cancellation of the fee and creation of an open-air gym and drinking water facility in the park. He stated that the park would be able to attract more visitors if the two facilities were created than that of present. The joggers have been demanding a gym and water facility for quite long.
Established at an estimated cost of Rs 3.5 crore, the park showcases biodiversity. It is a home to a host of forest plant species, a staggering array of avian community, butterflies, wild boars and monkeys. It has 11,000 fully grown tree species namely neem, pala (Oxystelma esculentum), teak tectona grandis, Regu (Ziziphus nummularia) and hundreds of herbal plants, offering a pleasant experience to joggers and visitors.
Proposals to develop park on cold storage
Meanwhile, proposals to develop lung space have been put in cold storage for two years. Proposals to facelift the park on the lines of Shilparamam in Hyderabad were prepared in 2023. A convention centre, children’s play area, food court, boating, crafts stalls, cottages, cultural museum, etc., were among the facilities planned, at an estimated cost of Rs 20 crore.
The joggers and visitors requested the government to take steps to develop the park by creating the facilities. They said that they were currently forced to visit parks in Karimnagar, Warangal and Hyderabad cities for recreation.
