Visakhapatnam: Residents demand park, community hall

Visakhapatnam: Bharat Nagar is one of the colonies that falls under the purview of Simhachalam 'Panchagramalu' land issue.

Located near Prahaladapuram, the colony saw signs of development in 1990. There are 65 plots in the neighbourhood. The colony has about 100 houses and the population is about 600.

Though some of the lanes look quite good, a few others are in a bad condition. A few of the roads were not covered properly after the completion of UGD works.

Explaining the woes faced by the residents of the colony, president of the residents' welfare association M Eswara Rao says, "There is a need to increase sanitation staff as the present strength is not sufficient to meet the growing demands of the colony. Even the drains need to be cleared at regular intervals."

Residents say that there is no space available for them to hold meetings as the colony, does not have amenities such as a park and a community hall. "Even for a small gathering, we have no space. There is a requirement for a community hall in the neighbourhood," shares Ch Koteswara Rao, secretary of the colony association. Often, Gopi Janavallabha Swamy temple turns out to be a meeting point for the residents of the colony to carry out spiritual activities.

Though there are lands available in the neighbourhood, officials concerned need to provide alternate land to the Simhachalam Devasthanam to facilitate construction of a community hall and development of a park.

Traffic flow is quite heavy in the colony as the roads here connect Vepagunta, Simhachalam and two Sai Baba shrines.