Mumbai: ‘Come, bat for Patwardhan Park’

Residents have been fighting hard to save the park, where a multi-storey parking lot is being planned. File photo

How do you tell the establishment that a supposedly closed playground it plans to eat up for a parking lot is anything but closed? You play on the ground.
Incensed at the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation claiming that the Patwardhan Park in Bandra is "closed and only used for occasional community gatherings", residents of the Khar -Bandra belt have organised a friendly cricket match at the playground.

The move comes on the heels of a Public Interest Litigation filed before the Bombay High Court against construction of a parking lot in one part of the playground. The BMC had floated a Rs 75 crore tender for a three-storey underground parking lot, inviting staunch opposition from local residents.

Also Read: Patwardhan Park Parking Row: No help from BMC or local neta, Bandra residents move high court

After pleas to the civic body and local politicians fell on deaf ears, the residents are now trying to reach out to as many people as they can, so that regular sports events can be held at the park. As part of this initiative, a friendly cricket match will be played on Sunday by youngsters who have been regularly playing at the Park. The idea is the brainchild of Naazish Shah and Nidhi Chaturvedi, two of the many residents who have been fighting tirelessly to save the park.

"The BMC is trying to project it as a barren land which no one is using. In reality, there are youngsters playing cricket, football and volleyball on this playground every day. We thought we could highlight this by organising a match and get the entire neighbourhood to support it," said Shah.

They have also started a Twitter account to appeal to the people to "come, bat for Patwardhan Park".

"The idea is to show the BMC that the space they want to take away is not just a parking lot, but a vital playground for the children of this neighbourhood. Our hope is that the BMC will reconsider its plans and find an alternative solution that doesn't involve taking away a green space and this precious playground from our kids,"
said Chaturvedi.