Breathe easy, JP Park is here

Breathe easy, JP Park is here
The Times of India

Bangalore: This is north-west Bangalore’s answer to Cubbon Park and Lalbagh. Eighty-five acres of sylvan bio-diversity, green belts of landscaped gardens and a groove that has plants that subscribe to your sun sign.

The Jayaprakash Narayan Park (JP Park) that has come up at the junction of Jalahalli and Mathikere after decades of delay, has been fortuitously revamped to beget the title of BMP’s largest park. It will be thrown open to the public after CM H D Kumaraswamy inaugurates it on Sunday.

Developed at a cost of Rs 8.5 crore, the park boasts of 20,000 varieties of plant species, 60,000 flowering plants and shrubs and 5,000 medicinal herbs. Just like Lalbagh, a nursery would be functional soon. Says JD Floor leader in the BMP, B R Nanjundappa: “There is a rock garden in the park modelled after the one in Almatti. A musical fountain will be functional in three months’ time.’’

The park has three grooves called Pavithra Vana, which will have mini grooves called Nakshatra vana, Rashi Vana and Navagraha Vana. Apparently, each star in the zodiac constellation has a particular plant/tree ascribed to it. The groove would have plants of every star, rashi, planted. To kickstart this, Kumaraswamy is slated to plant a sapling of his rashi on Sunday.

The park also has a 4.5-km jogging track, bamboo garden, palm garden, play area for kids and women’s playground with dedicated shuttle and tennicoit courts. There are also a few acres devoted to a football court, volleyball ground, kabaddi ground and a 1,000-seater amphitheatre.

Main attractions in the park are the two water bodies of 15 and nine acres each. The bigger lake has already attracted migratory birds like pond heron, coot hen, little cormorant, moore hen, pelicans etc.

At present, the park is open to the public freely. But a minimal entry charge might be levied later based on the maintenance costs. Yes, there’s a separate parking area to accommodate 200 cars and 400 two-wheelers. And the entire park is a nosmoking zone. Timings: 5 am to 8.30 am and 5 pm to 8.30 pm.