PCB theme garden on cards

PUNE: The first theme park of the Pune Cantonment Board (PCB) is in the offing. Elected members of the board are working on a proposal to create a theme park at J J Garden, one of the biggest gardens in the cantonment.
"Since we have never done such a project, we are looking to carry it out on a build operate and transfer basis. People who have experience in developing such gardens will be involved right from selecting the theme up to completing the garden," said Shailendra Bidkar, an elected member of the board.
Bidkar said that the theme garden will have a butterfly garden, laser show and special fountains.He said that the project has been forwarded to the board. The decision on when to begin work will be taken during a board meeting and the project report will be forwarded to the southern command for final approval.
"Since J J garden is located in the central area of the cantonment and is also close to areas such as M G road, it will get a good response. There is already a rush of visitors at the garden, and if a theme garden is developed, it will have more people visiting the area," said Prasad Kedari, another elected member of the board.
The cantonment areas have a number of gardens located in different parts. Some of the prominent gardens include Rani Laxmibai garden, Jai Jawan garden, Pratap garden and Shaheed Bhagat Singh garden. Garden overseer J B Kangane said that the J J Garden is spread across half acre and is one of the oldest gardens.
"The PCB has never had a theme garden. Now, the proposal has come to the board. The decision on the theme and other aspects will be taken by the board members and other senior officials. It is likely to come up during the next general body meeting," Kangane said.