Garbage inside and outside Deshabhakta Tarun Ram Phookun Park at Bharalumukh and Swahid Udyan at Paltan Bazar. Pictures by UB Photos

Oct 12: Parks were supposed to add beauty to the city, but most have now become dumping grounds of waste products. Many small parks, not frequented by people, have turned into huge litter bins by daily markets, shops and households.

Swahid Udyan, near Assam State Transport Corporation (ASTC) office in Paltan Bazar, is littered with hundreds of disposable plastic glasses, polythene bags and empty mineral water and liquor bottles. One may also find unused bamboo baskets and discards of the nearby daily market.

Unmindful of the degrading beauty of the park and not opposed by any one, some traders simply dump the waste inside the park, while others even use the boundary walls of the park to dry their clothes.

“We keep the baskets in the morning. But we remove them by evening,” said a shopkeeper of the nearby market.

Similar is the fate of two other parks with statues of Jyoti Prasad Agarwala and some freedom fighters at Bharalumukh. One cannot go near them because of the unbearable stink that emanates from the waste dumped just 10 to 15 metres from the statues.

The Deshabhakta Tarun Ram Phookun Park at Bharalumukh, too, has fallen a victim to people’s lack of civic sense. Located by the river , the park is a favourite place of many. But just a few metres from the statue of Phookun, lies a huge pile of debris near the boundary wall of the park, which is sure to put off any visitor.

“People generally visit that side of the park which is near the Brahmaputra. They do not come near the statue of Phookun because of this garbage bin,” said Ajit Kalita, an auto driver, who parks his auto near the garden.

The park is not just a dumping yard, but its boundary wall on this side has turned into a public toilet.

Dhiren Baruah, president of the NGO, Save Guwahati, Build Guwahati, which has been working for the development of the city, said negligence on the part of the authority that maintains the small parks has become a matter of serious concern as it affects the beauty of the city.

“I have seen that the government officials concerned do not care to visit these parks. The officials of Guwahati Municipal Corporation should take prompt steps so that people do not litter the parks,” Baruah said.

The district administration should also take steps to create awareness among people in the city, he said.