07 January,2013 06:53 AM IST | | Kranti Vibhute
Within twelve hours of a MiD DAY report published on Saturday that highlighted BMC's apathy towards repairing the Gilder Tank playground in Grant Road (East), the municipal authority began spreading red soil. The ground was repaired the same day.
"We thank MiD DAY for the report. It pushed the BMC into action. Our children were able to play on the ground by evening," said Ramesh Sangle, a Grant Road resident, adding, "However, this should not be the end of restoring the ground. It used to have green grass earlier. It should be repaired in such a way that greenery grows back again."
Prior to the report, the residents had to resort to a signature campaign to catch the municipal authority's attention regarding the bad condition of the ground. Five months ago, the Gilder Tank playground was given on lease to a private organisation for the Ganesh Festival, following which, the ground had become dangerous for the children and there were stones and construction mud lying around. According to the residents, the civic authority was not paying any attention to the repeated requests to repair the ground.
The residents are now consulting an expert on maintaining the green cover on playgrounds to figure out how to go about it. "If the solution is feasible, we will request the civic body to consult with the expert and act on his suggestions," Sangle added.
Anil Nagre, MNS Area President for Grant Road (East), who also pushed the BMC to repair the ground, was happy with the action taken. "Finally the children are able to come here to play."u00a0The residents were able to collect around 500 signatures during their signature campaign and are now planning to send the document to the civic body with various suggestions to make the ground more children-friendly. u00a0
