A crowd puller

The recently-opened Kishanbagh Park in the Old City is now the go-to place for the locals

Rehana doesn’t remember when she last spent a quiet moment enjoying the sight of sun-kissed leaves dancing to the melody of cool breeze. Her daily grind as a homemaker doesn’t give her enough time to relax and unwind. Last Sunday when she took time off to visit the Kishanbagh park in her neighbourhood, she felt immensely elated and invigorated.

She is not alone to experience this heavenly bliss. For scores of women in this part of the Old City, the new park at Kishanbagh has emerged as a breath of fresh air, an oasis in the desert. The GHMC authorities are pleasantly surprised at the public response. On Sunday they ran out of the printed ticket tokens as a large number of people turned up. They had to issue paper slips as tickets. When the park closed at 7 pm, there was a large crowd of people waiting to get in.

The Kishanbagh Park has turned out to be a winner. In the making for the last couple of years, the Rs. 6.2 crore-park is drawing people in droves right from day one. The reason is not far to seek. This back of beyond area has no hangouts and recreational spots. For residents of colonies in Attapur, MM Pahadi and Kishanbagh there is just no place to take refuge from noise and congestion thanks to blatant concretisation of the area. “To get some fresh air, we have to visit Zoo park or come all the way to Public Gardens or Lumbini Park,” says Rasheeda.

The second major park in the old city after the one at Imlibun, it has become an instant hit with families. People are pleased that the park developed over five acres has all the facilities. It boasts of a herbal garden (30 varieties), desert garden (30 varieties), rose garden, fragrance garden, ficus garden, butterfly garden and seasonal flowers. The variety of flowering plants are a treat to the eyes and a good reason to take a leisurely stroll.This, in addition to play facilities for kids, a seating gallery, a walkers track, cafeteria, internal and external pathways.


Not long ago this place was a piece of barren land covered with weeds and emitted foul smell making people gasp for lung space.Parks and playgrounds are the soul of a city and access to them plays a key role in improving health and reducing stress levels.

J.S.Ifthekhar,

Hyderabad based journalist.

Article published in The Hindu

Dated July 24,2018