The entire landscaping, of the garden situated opposite the District and Sessions Court, the electrical work and planting of flora was carried out by the Goa State Infrastructure Development Corporation in consultation with the Corporation of City of Panjim (CCP). For a couple of weeks, the venue was kept clean and water oozed out of the fountain. But today the situation has deteriorated. The fountain once again stands dirty and neglected, along with the garden, where bushes have grown in places. The space is not just occupied by general public and tourists, but also by police escorts and alleged criminals, who are brought to the court for remand and/or trials, take advantage of the shade until the police van arrives to pick them.
PANJIM MUNICIPAL GARDEN: Garcia da Orta garden, popularly known as the Panjim Municipal Garden is definitely one of the cleanest and the busiest gardens, especially for the locals who spend pleasant evenings therein. The rectangular garden was restored by the CCP at an estimated cost of Rs 2.5 crore.
However, the most essential facility – toilets have been abruptly shut, causing inconvenience to visitors. There are reports that people urinate at corners, with foul smell emanating from the premises. The garden has well kept lawn and plants and is maintained well compared to other gardens and parks in the capital.
PANJIM MUNICIPAL GARDEN 2: This garden is the step sister of the main municipal garden or the Garcia de Horta garden situated right next to it. There has been some superficial work done on the garden. But on the whole, the place is a mess and a dumping ground for the kiosks that dot its periphery; a far cry from the times that local residents’ children used to play there almost every day.
JOGGERS’ PARK, ALTINHO: This garden is used by a lot of Panjimites for their early morning or evening exercises. The garden was supposed to be the cynosure of all eyes. But though it is used, the lack of maintenance has started telling on the garden. However, the standards are still okay.
Despite it lying in the vicinity of Secretaries and Ministers bungalows there dirt is dumped outside the park walls. This is a mixture of mud and plastics and looks as if it is some garbage picked up from somewhere and dumped there for lack of a better place to dump it.
FRANCISCO GOMES GARDEN, CAMPAL: This garden is situated in the heritage section of the city. However, residents complain that tourist buses park all around it and the tourists use the garden for cooking, drinking and sleeping. The garden is always littered with empty liquor bottles and other garbage which the tourists leave behind when they leave to the chagrin of the people who want to sit there in the evenings. Of late a number of taxi drivers have made the Campal garden vicinity their unauthorised taxi stand. Hordes of taxi driver sit there, play cards and occupy the pavements.
