After a long gap, Children’s Arena to serve its purpose

Visakhapatnam: The Visakhapatnam Metropolitan Region Development Authority’s (VMRDA) Children’s Arena which was set up with an aim to educate and entertain children in various fields has failed to serve its purpose in the past five years during the YSRCP rule. Thrown open to public in 2017, the arena was intended to organise a number of programmes so that students from primary and secondary level would be exposed to entertainment and academic fields. Such an auditorium dedicated to children was unique in undivided Andhra Pradesh. However, over a period of time, the purpose for which the facility was set up gradually got deviated.

As a result, the number of programmes that are not related to children increased in the auditorium steadily. In the past five years, the YSRCP government neglected to organise children-related events and encouraged commercial programmes instead.

After the NDA government came to power, it recognised the need to cater to the younger population and decided to give priority to host events for children.

In line with it, the VMRDA focused on an action plan to conduct children’s programmes once in every 15 days. Marking the Children’s Day celebrated on November 14, the VMRDA plans to resume the activities as it did earlier. VMRDA commissioner K S Viswanathan stated that children-related events will resume at the VMRDA Children’s Arena from November 14. Training will be given in communication skills, public speaking skills, orientation on music, drawing and painting, science related activities, storytelling session, art and craft, quiz, artificial intelligence coding, skills required for children in the 21st century, calligraphy, Mathematics, workshop on acting to students. Class X and Intermediate students will be given free training on career guidance and other topics by experienced trainers as part of the Children’s Day celebrations. This apart, children’s films will also be screened on the occasion, the VMRDA Commissioner informed.