SIALKOT-Recreational parks in Sialkot, Daska and Pasrur tehsils have been presenting a very miserable condition, reflecting the height of apathy and negligence on the part of officials concerned of local municipalities, and even district administration who have miserably failed to make available requisite basic facilities in these parks for providing better recreational facilities to people.
In Sialkot, Gulshan-e-Iqbal Park has been lying abandoned due to the non-availability of basic facilities by the Sialkot Municipal Corporation, as the mounting trash heaps could be witnessed everywhere in this park. It seemed that there is no concept of cleanliness in this park. All the iron and wooden swings, marry-go-rounds are lying damaged and out-of-order in the park. The water lake in this park has now become a pond of the dirty sewerage water due to the alleged slackness of Sialkot Municipal Corporation.
The several feet high self-grown grass and weeds have already abandoned all the ways, lawns, grounds and even the dried up water lake in Gulshan-e-Iqbal Park as well.
Due to which, the number of the visitors has reduced to a great extant, in this regard.
The several feet high grass lying untrimmed there for the last several months due to which it was causing the spread of mosquitoes and other insects there in this park.
Having very historical importance, now Sialkot's Gulshan-e-Iqbal Park has become a safer place for the local addicts and stray dogs as well, which could be found easily everywhere in this park, which also lacks the proper security arrangements as well. In Pasrur, the area's only recreational park namely "Nawaz Sharif Park Pasrur", named after the former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, has also been lying victim of official apathy of Pasrur Municipal Committee, due to which the cleanliness situation has now become worst in this park, as the local people were of the view that the Pasrur Municipality has allegedly turned its eyes blind to the mounted heaps of trash and garbage everywhere in Pasrur park with oozing bad smell and suffocation as well.
The local addicts have also converted this park into their safer place due to the lacked security system. The several encroachments have also been surfaced in various parts of this park by local influentials. Unknown thieves have already taken away the various parts of the swings affixed in this park. The miserable condition of Nawaz Sharif Park Pasrur here is also leaving a big question mark on the performance of concerned officials of Pasrur Municipal Committee. The heaps everywhere in this park speak volumes of alleged height of negligence of Pasrur municipality.
In Daska, the recently established "Shehbaz Sharif Park Daska" has been victim of official ill-planning and apathy, besides, speaking the volume of official negligence, in this regard.
This park was lying abandoned this recreational park for the local people, but not for the local stray animals as well.
Named after the former Punjab Chief Minister Shehbaz Sharif, this park has been presenting a very miserable and deserted look due to the non-availability of the basic facilities and lack of the mechanism of supervision of this park.
In January 2018, the then PML-N government had established this park and had named it after then Punjab Chief Minister Shehbaz Sharif in Daska. The Punjab government had spent Rs15 million on the establishment of this park with high claims and pledges to provide the international standard recreational facilities to the people of Daska, who had been deprived of any recreational park in Daska since the establishment of Pakistan.
After the change of the government in Punjab, now this "ill-fated" park has been victim of multiple problems. Due to the lacked mechanism of its looking after, this park has now become the safer place and heaven for the local addicts and even for the stray animals including the dogs and the donkeys as well. In fact, this project of establishing a recreational park was ill-planned, as the Punjab government had got this park established in hurry without providing the basic facilities including water and electricity in this park. Now, this poor-planning has resulted into the prevailing unchecked official apathy and negligence. This park was now lying abandoned for the local people and was not providing the recreation to the people for which it had been established in January 2018.
Shehbaz Sharif Park Daska was established at about two acres of land in outskirts of Daska along the dilapidated banks of Bambaanwala-Ravi-Baidian (B.R.B) Canal Daska. There was no easy access of the people to reach this park, as the BRB Canal Banks were also in crumbling condition and people were reluctant to reach there, as this park had no easy access for the people from any side. The local roads leading to this park were also in shabby condition.
Public Health Engineering Department Sialkot had established this park, as this department was meant for the construction of the roads, streets, sewerage schemes as well.
However, it was amazing to mention that the then Punjab government had allotted the contract of establishment of this park to Public Health Engineering Department purely on political grounds.
Now, the local stray animals including dogs and donkeys could be witnessed while wandering everywhere in this park instead of the local people.
There was no concept of cleanliness in this park, as the several feet high self-grown grass was also lying untrimmed there as well.
Most of this grass has become paled (yellow) due to the non-availability of the water for watering the saplings and this grass after their trimming as well.
There was no electricity in this Shehbaz Sharif Park Daska. Only a single electricity transformer had been installed in this park for the direly needed better electrification of this park.
Few months ago, some unknown accused had stolen this transformer. Ironically, no one has yet bothered to take serious notice of this miserable condition of park.
No one, from both Municipal Committee Daska and Public Health Engineering Department Sialkot, was ready to take the official responsibility to look after this park. Both were holding responsible each other to look after this park.
There was no official staff deputed there to look after this park and this situation was alarming as well.
This park was totally lacking all the basic facilities including proper light system, proper cleanliness mechanism, water and security as well.
Having only a main ironed gate, the park has no boundary walls as well. Due to which the local stray animals including donkeys and dogs often enter in this park to wander.
Ironically, the stray animals were enjoying while picnicking and recreation there in Daska park, which was meant and established to provide better recreational facilities to the local people. People were averting to visit this park, while stray animals could be seen wandering everywhere in this park besides taking rest on the untrimmed grass while laying down there under the sun.
The people of Daska had been lying deprived of any, even a single, recreational park at Daska since the Creation of Pakistan. It was the first and only official park established by the Punjab government, which had been victim of official apathy.
Local social, religious, business and political circles of Sialkot, Daska and Pasrur have expressed grave concern over this miserable condition of this park.
When contacted, the concerned officials of Sialkot Municipal Corporation said that the Corporation was lacking resources for this purpose.
They have urged the Punjab Chief Minister Sardar Usman Buzdar, Commissioner Gujranwala Division Asad Ullah Faiz and Sialkot Deputy Commissioner Dr. Syed Bilal Haider to take serious notice of this situation. This is the only recreational park in Pasrur for local, which has become victim of official negligence by the local administration, in this regard.