MULTAN, Nov 24: A majority of the Multan Municipal Corporation (MMC) parks has lost their verdure due to the indifference of the authorities concerned.

There are 15 parks in Mumtazabad Colony, 10 in New Multan, four in Walaitabad, three each in Hassan Parvana and Gulgasht Colony and two in Shamsaabad. Of the 37, only 12 are in good condition.

None of the 10 parks in Mumtazabad Colony is worth visiting any more. In the seldom watered parks, there are no signs of grass. Heaps of filth have become a permanent feature of these public places.

The condition of parks in Hassan Parvana and Walaitabad colonies is not different.

Lush green parks in New Multan Colony are no more pleasant to look at. Grass in these parks has dried up. These seem to have become a victim of the gardeners’ negligence.

The situation is even worst in the surroundings of Shah Rukn-i-Alam shrine. Hundreds of pilgrims to the shrine sit near Haji Camp situated on the park. One of the parks can always be seen overcrowded with beggars while the other has become a house of garbage belching stink.

The number of visitors to the Qila Khana Qasim park has drastically reduced with gradual deterioration, causing a visible decline in revenue. It is no more what it was five or six years ago.

Horticulture deputy director Iqbal Bhatti told Dawn that the number of gardeners was insufficient to look after these parks. The amount allocated for the upkeep of these parks was much less than required, he added.

He maintained most of the pipes meant for watering parks had become worn out while lighting system was ineffective.

However, the other side of the coin suggested that the MMC had appointed 175 gardeners for the upkeep of these parks. Since the municipal’s engineering branch had Rs200,000 allocated for the work during 2001, it was responsible for the maintenance.

The municipal authorities had reportedly allocated Rs2.5 million for the upkeep of parks for 2002.

An MMC official, on the condition of anonymity, told this correspondent that unless elected representatives and the authorities concerned took some genuine interest in maintenance of these parks, increase in budget was a waste.