Just ask any Kodambakkam citizen to go with you to the Park. You will without fail scare him and will listen him lament about the worsening situation in the Anna Park, the only refuge of the area especially during the summer from the heat wave that is raging in the city.

Anna Park is situated in the Circular Road of United India Colony, Kodambakkam and comes under the jurisdiction of Corporation of Chennai. Unfortunately, the Corporation has not been maintaining it properly for the past several years. The gates are chained and locked. Some manage to sneak in through the gate that is ajar. But there is nothing but disappointment inside. The stones that make a path on the lawn are broken and have been removed in many places. The illumination behind and outside the park is insufficient. The concrete benches are broken and damaged. Children do not have adequate equipment to play with.

Strangely, not even a single guard has been employed to keep watch throughout the day. This has enabled antisocial elements to misuse the park during the nights. Women are afraid of going anywhere within the vicinity of the Park during nights. Complaints made to the Corporation officials have been of no avail.

The woes of Kodambakkam are not limited to the Anna Park alone. The Rangarajapuram railway level crossing should be converted into a subway. Traffic is extraordinarily high in this area and oftentimes one is stuck in a traffic jam. Besides this, the absence of a subway here creates unnecessary congestion in the Duraisamy Road subway and on the Kodambakkam over-bridge. A subway would ease the flow of traffic not only in Kodambakkam but also in its neighbourhood.

The Kodambakkam citizens complain of lack of other facilities too. Enough public lavatories have not been provided for the slum-dwellers of Rangarajapuram area, who live very close to the railway track. The entire area stinks and is prone to serious health problems. Rowdy elements from slums close to United India colony harass the residents of the colony. They very strongly feel that a police outpost must be provided for the area.

Another thing they complain about is that though there are a good number of Aavin milk subscribers, there is no milk booth in the area. The people feel that at least one automatic milk-vending booth must be established here.

‘There are not even direct buses available to reach areas like Anna Nagar, Adyar etc.’ deplored a resident. ‘Kodambakkam is a very important locality of the city and it is a shame that even elementary facilities are not provided here,’ he said.