Maya to inaugurate Noida park on Oct 14

The Bhim Rao Ambedkar Park in Noida,a 33-hectare project that commemorates Dalit leaders,will be inaugurated on October 14 by Chief Minister Mayawati.

The Bhim Rao Ambedkar Park in Noida,a 33-hectare project that commemorates Dalit leaders,will be inaugurated on October 14 by Chief Minister Mayawati. The complex,built at a cost of Rs 685 crore,is in the process of getting finishing touches.

The project,which many claimed was in violation of environmental norms,was stayed by the Supreme Court in October 2009. The SC benched,chaired by then Chief Justice K G Balakrishnan,had taken into consideration its proximity to the Okhla Bird Sanctuary and need to protect the green cover. The stay on construction was lifted in December 2010,with the court imposing the condition that pucca construction should not exceed 25 per cent of the area. It had also said 50 per cent of land next to Okhla Bird Sanctuary should have tree cover.

All the work is complete. Only finishing touches are being applied before the Chief Ministers visit. In fact,75 per cent of the work was complete when the Supreme Court stayed the project. After the order was lifted,the rest of the work only took around 6 months to complete, said Balwinder Kumar,CEO of Noida Authority.

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The complex is divided into three sections Central Park Plaza,Ambedkar Plaza and Column Plaza. The court directive on green cover has also been maintained,officials said.

A total of 1,52,000 shrubs of 75 different varieties have been planted in the area. In addition,7,500 trees have been planted, said Sant Ram Singh,Chief Project Engineer of Noida Authority.

The complex also has 15 statues of dalit icons such as Ambedkar,Jyotirao Phule and Kanshi Ram. It also has two statues of Mayawati. Ambedkar Plaza is the central structure with a dome. The monolithic contains three statues of Ambedkar,Kanshi Ram and Mayawati. The inside walls of the structure are adorned with sculptures of the leaders,including one of the Constituent Assembly headed by Ambedkar deliberating over the constitution.

The plaza is flanked by 10 stone elephants (each 18-foot high),the electoral symbol of the Bahujan Samaj Party. The elephant symbol is seen across the complex,with several at each entrance to the park and on each of the four fountains.

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The complex has been designed by architectural company Design Associates.

The park will also have a dedicated a security force. Some (personnel) have already been deployed,but more will follow once the park is inaugurated, said Singh. The park would be open to the public,with an entrance fee,he said. We have not decided on the fee yet he added.

The Chief Minister will also inaugurate four other projects on her visit to Noida Mahamaya Girls Inter College and Panchshil Boys Inter College,a SC/ST hostel in Sector 62 and Sector-30s Ambedkar Hospital,which is also known as New District Hospital.

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