CHENNAI: The neglected Arignar Anna Park in Royapuram is a typical example of how authorities look at North Chennai. The park’s historical association is unmissable, it was here that late chief minister C N Annadurai had announced the launch of the DMK in 1949. The park, which comes under the ambit of Greater Chennai Corporation (GCC), was called Robinson Park and later rechristened after Annadurai.Residents of Royapuram rue that the park has limited facilities when compared to those in the south of the city. Broken equipment greet children at the play area and locals complain that the greenery has shrunk considerably. One of the largest open areas of North Chennai has now become an eyesore, they say. “Two decades of total neglect has taken the sheen out of the largest park in North Chennai. There’s almost no greenery,” said P Munisamy, a former resident of Washermenpet, who’s now shifted to Thiruvottiyur.The park, spread over six acres, is located diagonally opposite to Government R S R M Lying-In Hospital on Cemetry Road at Royapuram. When TOI visited the park on Monday, children were seen using broken teeter-totters and swings, even the jungle gym was rusted. An area inside the park was filled with iron pillars. Official sources said the park has around 200 trees, around 50 were uprooted during the 2016 cyclone.Another frequent visitor to the park complained that the facility lacks a gym. “Arignar Anna Park can’t boast of any facilities when compared to the upgraded parks of south Chennai. Though hundreds of people go for morning walk, it does not have a gym,” S Suresh of Meenakshi Ammanpet at Royapuram said.Greater Chennai Corporation said the park records a footfall of 1,800 people everyday, 50% of the visitors come during the morning hours. The number swells during weekends, though civic officials don’t have an exact figure.A V S Marimuthu, co-convenor of North Chennai People Rights Federation, said the park desperately requires a facelift. “The park’s size shrunk as a portion of the land was given away to Chennai Metropolitan Water Supply and Sewerage Board (CMWSSB). The greenery should be increased,” he said.An official of the GCC said the park’s maintenance will very soon be outsourced to a private agency with an outlay of Rs 8 lakh per annum. “A proposal for gym facility could not materialize due to lack of funds,” the official said. Saplings have been planted to increase greenery, another official added.

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