The Hindu 22.04.2013
NDMC gym to run defence classes for women
Facility yet to be fully functional; areas demarcated for billiards, table tennis, gym, luxury bath.
The New Delhi Municipal Council-run sports centre at
Laxmi Bai Nagar will become one more venue from where the Delhi Police
will teach women how to defend themselves from the Capital’s predators.
Judo and karate classes will soon begin at this multipurpose gym which
is flanked by Indraniketan Women’s Hostel and Pillanji Village in
Sarojini Nagar.
Yet this facility, which was
inaugurated in January this year, with cost estimates ranging between
Rs.2 crore and Rs.5 crore, is far from being a fully functional
“multipurpose” gymnasium. It houses a steam sauna bath (a first for the
civic body), demarcated areas for billiards, snooker, table tennis,
squash and gym facilities and a a wide green cover at the back which is
yet to be developed according to the area map at the entrance.
In
actuality, the civic body for the last three months has kept everything
locked except the gym, table tennis and yoga room. The luxurious steam
and sauna baths – one for men and the other for women – have been
awaiting specialists to operate them given that they require careful
attention.
“For now we are providing access to some
facilities free-of-charge,” said New Delhi Municipal Council Director
(Projects) O. P. Mishra. The civic body is keen to assess the footfall
at the facility before tariffs are decided. “We do not want it to be
underutilised. We have drawn up a plan to check the popularity of the
facility before we open up all the amenities to the public. It will be
done along the same lines as the NDMC’s facility in Kaka Nagar,” he
said. The Kaka Nagar facility has 1,500 members and the civic body
claims that it also took a while to become popular.
The
squash courts will remain closed, at least for now. “We are not opening
the squash courts since there is no demand for them right now. But
apart from that we need a good trainer since squash is such a sport that
needs to be closely monitored. It is a very simple game but it can also
cause injury to the legs,” said Mr. Mishra.
While
crores of rupees have been invested in construction of the multipurpose
gym, the “green cover” at the back is non-existent. Presently, it serves
as a garbage dump for the residents of Pillanji Village with a
dilapidated basket ball court and an area with overgrown shrubs that
could be turned into a tennis court.
“The space at
the back will be developed into either a tennis court, if the space
permits, or an open badminton court. We will also look into building a
basketball court,” said Mr. Mishra. For now, the grounds continue to
serve as a place for the neighbouring colony kids to while away their
time or for residents to fling a plastic bag full for garbage.
