COIMBATORE: With the first phase of the state's largest botanical park now inaugurated on 45 acres at Gandhipuram, the Coimbatore City Municipal Corporation (CCMC) has confirmed that the ambitious Semmozhi Poonga project will be expanded into the remaining 120 acres once the Coimbatore Central Prison is relocated to Bilichi in the city's outskirts. Officials said that while the park has been formally inaugurated by Chief Minister MK Stalin on Tuesday, several final works are under way and will be completed before it opens to the public on December 1.
Phase I of the Semmozhi Poonga was developed at a cost of Rs 208.5 crore and includes extensive landscaped gardens, cultural installations and modern recreational zones. It also features a grand convention centre with a seating capacity of 1,000 people, though this structure is still under construction and will take a few more weeks to be completely ready.
CCMC officials told TNIE that a handful of key attractions and amenities in the park remain in their final stages of work. These include an AR-VR experience centre, a 12D theatre, ticket counters, an elaborate waterfall-themed entrance arch, an indoor play zone for children, a 4,000 sq. ft. terrarium showcasing miniature ecosystems, and an outdoor fitness zone equipped with high-quality exercise equipment.
"Pending works will be wrapped up in the coming days. The convention centre is the only component that needs more time. Civil works are nearly done, and interior installations will begin soon," a senior CCMC official said.
Meanwhile, attention has shifted to the second phase of the project, which will cover the remaining 120 acres of the central prison land. The CCMC will take up the next phase once the state completes construction of the new prison complex in Bilichi and transfers inmates and operations there. After the shift, the existing premises will be formally handed over to CCMC for redevelopment.
Importantly, officials have assured that the manually operated oil press used by freedom fighter VO Chidambaram Pillai (VOC) during his imprisonment in 1908, along with the prison cell where he spent over two years, will not be demolished. Instead, they will be restored and showcased as heritage monuments within the second phase of Semmozhi Poonga, offering visitors a window into the region's freedom movement history, officials added.