KMC identifies 5 parks to set up open-air gyms in city

Kolkata: The Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) has already identified five parks in the city for setting up open-air gyms. The decision on the part of Parks and Gardens department of the civic body resulted after the tremendous response to the open-air gym in Rajnandini Park on Jyotish Roy Road in New Alipore that started functioning from February this year.

"We are in the process of floating tenders for the equipment that are required for setting up such open-air gyms," a senior official of the Parks and Gardens department of the KMC said.

The parks that have been selected for putting up the gym infrastructure are Tala Jheel Park at Ward number 5, Deshbandhu Park at Ward number 12, Deshapriya Park at Ward 85, Prafulla Kanan Park at Ward 32 and Birsa Munda Park at Ward 38 of the civic body.

"We have plans to set up such gyms in all the parks maintained by us wherever there is the availability of space," the official added.

The KMC maintains around 720 parks in the city spanning across all 144 Wards.

"Residents hailing from lower-middle-class background find it difficult to go to private gyms and sweat it out because of financial stringency and lack of time. Morning and evening walkers who visit the parks can work out if we can make arrangements for open-air gyms free of cost. It will also save time," said Debasish Kumar, Member, Mayor-in-Council (MMiC) (Parks and Gardens). According to sources in the KMC's Parks and Gardens department, the idea of open-air gyms in parks had cropped up in Kumar's mind when he had gone to a flower show at Rajnandini Park a few days after the gym became operational there.

Kumar was extremely impressed with the facilities and the excitement among the people in the area regarding the gym that was set up with the initiative of his colleague MMiC (Drainage) Tarak Singh, who is also the councillor of the area. Kumar had then directed his officers to explore places in parks where such gyms can come up.

"We will not be able to run gym equipment which is driven by electricity. But we can have some of the machines for light workouts like waist twister, multi-twister, chest press, twist stepper, health walker etc, that do not need electricity," the official said.