From a garbage dump to an exotic park

Once a venue for dog slaughter, then a garbage dump, and now an exquisite expanse of lush greenery - this is the story of a stretch of Chennai Corporation-owned land at Basin Elephant Gate Road near Pulianthope.

The 55,000 square feet area of corporation land here has undergone a sea change from what it was a few decades ago. Residents of Pulianthope recall the days when the land was used by the city corporation for slaying stray dogs, earning itself the name Naai Adichan Pettai.

Later, when the corporation switched over to the sterilisation of stray dogs, the land was converted into a garbage transfer ground, from where garbage was taken to the Kodungaiyur dumping ground.

Soon, the garbage transfer ground was relocated to a spot 500 metres away rendering Nai Adichan Pettai vacant.

Thanks to the slum-dwellers of Sundarapuram and Gandhinagar across the road from this stretch of land, it became an open toilet too. But now, there is not a single trace whatsoever of any of its former usages.

About six months ago, the Chennai Corporation built a wall around the land, and commenced planting Korean grass and around 30-40 trees there. With Rs 24 lakh spent on it by the corporation, there has been a total transformation of the land.

A fountain, a walker's pathway and greenery add appeal to the garden,which will be open to the public in a few days.

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