Ramna Park has changed for the better
Sir,
Even a decade ago, the mere thought of Ramna Park used to evoke revulsion in the minds of many city-dwellers. The attitude has changed radically. Over the last ten years, this beautiful park in the capital has witnessed an amazing metamorphosis.
Gone are the pervasive desolation, numerous types of public nuisance --- and the feeling of insecurity that would grip the visitors there. Some areas of the park used to remain dark or poorly lit. Taking this opportunity, muggers and sex workers would swoop on their unwitting targets. These days, the park finds itself awash with lights, with guards on patrol.Paying a visit to Ramna Park in the afternoon is now a pleasant experience. The sprawling garden is filled with hundreds of rare species of plants and trees, along with the local ones.
Although the large park began its journey during the Mughal era, it underwent a massive beautification initiated by a British collector in early 19th century.
In the subsequent times, the parks attraction comprised its being an oasis of sorts in the urban aridity of Dhaka. Until its atmosphere took a grim turn, the park had occupied a place among Dhakas major recreational spots. There were days, when idlers would sleep away the summer noon under large trees. Even people visiting the city for a day only, with no place to rest, would be seen finding the park as a safe shelter. Impostors, roaming hoodlums and other criminals eventually emerged as a terror for these people.
Nowadays, pairs of college or university-going male and female students gossiping on benches beside the lake, or middle-class families engrossed in lively Adda are a common spectacle. The Ramna Park authorities deserve thanks for bringing the gardens lost beauty back.
Asif Iqbal
Dhaka
