The name of this park is charming, but not its premises

Bougainvillea Park in Anna Nagar East: charming name, crowded premises, drainage issues, and need for improvements.

Its name is charming, but its premises are less so: Bougainvillea Park at Anna Nagar East, spanning 2.7 acres, is crowded even on a warm, weekday evening; but, a walk around it is not as pleasant as it should be.

Drainage seems to be an issue: a pool of dirty, stagnant water is in the children’s play area and in a few other spots as well. Shristina S., a frequent visitor, had to stop her two-year-old daughter from venturing too close to the drain. “We come here two or three times a week. It’s a good park, but the children’s area needs some improvements,” says the 26-year-old.

The play area is large and filled with equipment, but broken swings, piles of uncleared leaves and twigs everywhere, and the lack of a proper sandy surface make it unappealing. In 2022, the Greater Chennai Corporation handed over the maintenance of 738 parks to a private contractor, and Bougainvillea Park was one of them. However, regular users point out that cleaning is not up to the mark, an area that used to be a lawn with a fountain at its centre has now been barricaded off with the fountain not working owing to seepage and other issues, and there is no regular security service.

“We have seen rats in the drainage here. Mosquitoes after 6.30 p.m. and stray dogs are another issue,” says an Anna Nagar resident and one of a group of senior citizens who use the park regularly.

Litter is a constant problem, points out S. Prema, 78, who has been a park regular for years. “People from in and around the area come here, have their lunch/meals, and then leave their trash behind,” she says. The tall clock in the park does not work. Geetha V., another regular, says the women’s toilet is unusable — it smells and even the lights do not work. Every few days, attempts are made to drain out the water, says another senior citizen, but the problem seems to re-occur constantly.

There are several redeeming features to the space, however: the exercise area is large, full of equipment and well-maintained, the greenery is lush and shady, with benches marked for ‘senior citizen ladies’ and ‘senior citizen gents’ underneath a canopy of trees. As all of the regulars — like K. Jothivelu, 75, a resident of Anna Nagar — say their friendship groups here are the best part of the park. A little maintenance could go a long way.