If you let people own their land, they take care of it. That’s why privately owned land is always taken care of, and the parks look like cesspools. Nobody takes care of what everybody owns.
“…..Grover Glen Norquist.
To a large extent I agree with Norquist and I have experienced the same across Delhi. Parks are the heartbeats of a community and convey the community’s wellness. A Park is a window into the soul of a community.
Parks are integral to a community’s quality of living and hence the often asked query of the home buyer or renter is ‘Park facing hai Kya?‘ It goes without saying that park facing properties carry a premium on value. I vividly remember paying a premium on my property because it was a corner house and had open spaces on two sides. Parks are not only providing socially interactive platforms to the two most vulnerable sections of society…..the elders and the children, but offer multiple benefits that add essential values which prompt potential residents and home owners to choose park facing options. Local parks are an integral part of a happy, healthy city and hence ought to be supported and protected in every community.
Leisure is an important factor of any community’s identity and the same is aptly portrayed by the quality of the leisure spaces. It is an unchallenged truth that well maintained green spaces not only add beauty and aesthetics but actively contribute to the inhabitants staying healthy—both mentally and physically—particularly in modern urban settings.
Several studies have shown that urban parks provide benefits in public health. Stress is reduced, while mental and social health is boosted, when we are surrounded by natural ecosystems. Scientific findings and reports testify to positive wellness benefits such as reduced levels of stress, reduced blood pressure, improved mood and self-esteem, reduced risk of depression and substance abuse, an increase in levels of physical activity and more. Once the community embraces the importance of parks a great payback cycle of quality life is put into motion.
Economic benefits are a spinoff and accrue with the ambience that encourages community market places and shops with added footfalls but also with added pride for belonging to a qualitatively thriving and throbbing community. The recent facelift and makeover of parks with flowers of all colors and hues certainly invites applause and appreciation. Urban parks have trees that purify the air and remove toxins naturally. Their root systems filter rainwater reducing pollution and improving the quality of groundwater that is becoming more precious with each passing day. They also check soil erosion and enrich the soil quality.
A resident Priyanka Parul says “Prior to shifting to the colony in 2018 I lived with my parents on Shah Jehan Road close to Khan Market in New Delhi and had access to the joys of well-maintained gardens and enjoyed quality ambience and outdoor living. Missing them here but we have a community garden that I look after with some neighborly help in addition to the ‘green belt’ adjacent to my house. It’s a pity that some people prefer turning open spaces into parking lots or garbage dumps. Another Good Samaritan of Ashish Sachdeva opines that “Our colony has an obligation to protect and assist our community’s efforts to enrich the natural beauty embodied in our local parks and landscape.’’
Going back to the Grover Norquist’s quote I single out….’nobody takes care of what everybody owns.’…..is the current pathetic involvement of the community when it comes to most of our parks. The misunderstood ownership is holding back the conversions that could transform our city into an urban paradise. Adding recreational and hobby activities can increase park use by over 40% and physical activity by 37%. Segregated areas can be developed for dog parks and pets petting zones and fish-ponds with appropriate furniture and equipment. Modern restrooms can be provided in parks to provide relief to park visitors and domestic help like drivers etc who currently use home walls and bushes.
Undoubtably the importance for a major uplift to the Parks could not be emphasized to all stakeholders and owners better than in the words of our social activist and daredevil Poonam Jain….” I extensively travel globally and it is my experiential learning that I discovered happier neighborhoods around properly organized community parks, ponds and riversides. Consequently, the cities with best parks and water bodies reflect healthier, happier and more productive environments and ecosystems.
