THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Yet another summer vacation is coming to an end and the Chacha Nehru Traffic Training Park in Shangumukham remains closed. The District Tourism Promotion Council had leased the park for renovation a year ago. The park has not been opened ever since.
A traffic training park is a source of knowledge and recreation to the children. Cycle tracks and traffic signals are the most attractive features of the park. The park was last renovated in 2010 when Kodiyeri Balakrishnan was the Tourism minister.
"These parks used to generate good income to the DTPC. After its shutdown, there is a huge loss to the council and the staff who worked at the park. However, Kudumbashree works clean the park on a regular basis. The Department of Tourism has unveiled a Shankumukham Master Plan under which the park will be renovated. Therefore, DTPC has no role to maintain the park now," said Bindumani, DTPC secretary.
A rented private restaurant can be seen in front of the park. "Despite several trees falling and destroying its cycle godown, officials remain unresponsive. DTPC must give sufficient facilities as per the rent they demand," said a staff at the Sindoor restaurant.
“We intend to develop Shangumukham in three steps in a proposal, which estimate Rs 14.6 crore. The proposal's highlight is the beachfront developments which includes an entry gate, parking lot, recreational hub, cultural hub and other landscape developments. The modification of the children's park is yet another prominent feature. As per the master plan, all proposed developments and renovation duties will be completed before March 31, 2020,” said officials at the Kerala State Planning Board.