Jamshedpur, April 22: The steel city received the perfect gift on Earth Day in the form of a park on a forest land, which was so far being used for open defecation and anti-social activities.
The biggest park in Jams-hedpur, christened Prithvi Paryavaran Udyan (Earth Environment Garden), is spread over 20 acres of forest land in Daiguttu on Purulia Road in Mango.
"This is an unique gift not only for the residents of Mango but for the entire city. The first phase of the park was inaugurated today with boun-dary walls to prevent encroac-hment and open defecation. It will also have 50 solar lights installed at strategic places to prevent anti-social activities. Security personnel will be deployed by the forest department too," Saryu Roy, state fo-od and civil supplies minister and Jamshedpur West MLA, said after the inauguration.
The event was attended by Jamshedpur MP Bidyut Bar-an Mahto, regional chief conservator of forest (Singhbhum) Sunil Kumar Gupta and conservator of forest (Jam-shedpur circle) D. Venkateshwarlu.
The park has a 3,000-feet long paved pathway for joggers and morning walkers, 15 wooden benches, a Navgrah Van(planetary forest), Rishi Van (named after constellations) and Panchavati Van (planted with indigenous species and medicinal plants).
Roy said he had submitted a proposal to the forest department to develop a taxonomy centre in the park where research on indigenous trees on the verge of extinction could be conducted.
Jamshedpur divisional forest officer Saba Alam Ansari said the estimated cost of the first phase of the park was around Rs 35 lakh.
"A plethora of medicinal plants have been grown in sync with the planetary positions in the Nakshatra Van like the one in Ranchi (near Raj Bhavan). The landscaping has been done in such as way that the medicinal and floral plants are associated with zodiac signs in Rishi Van. The park also boasts a recreation spot for children and a volleyball court," Ansari said.
The forest official said the second phase of the park, with an artificial reservoir and fountains, would be completed by the end of the year.
There will also be provision for drinking water and toilets besides an exclusive corner for the elderly with proper sitting arrangement.
This will be second-largest forest park in Kolhan region after Theme Park in Ghorabandha on the outskirts of Jamshedpur.
