We are familiar with the urban parks which are located in cities and populated areas; provide us with calm and quite atmosphere. People who live in cities and those who are trying to disappear from the squeezed city life rely on these urban parks for getting a good time with their family members. Gardens, playgrounds, sports field etc are some of the features provided by the urban parks. An example for an urban park is the NTR gardens.
NTR Gardens which covers an area of 36 acres is located near the Hussain Sagar Lake in Hyderabad. The construction of this park was started in the year 1999 and the work was completed in 2001. NTR Gardens is located in the heart of the Hyderabad city and is near to Lumbini Park, Birla Mandir and Necklace road which are often visited by the tourists from different part of the country. This park is not under the direct control of Telangana government instead they give directions to the Buddha Purnima Project Authority which operates the NTR Gardens. Let us a close look at the history of formation of this well known park.
The NTR gardens came to existence with the construction of a memorial for the Ex-Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh N T Ramarao. In the beginning there was only 5 acres of land under this memorial, later on it was expanded and thus the NTR gardens was constructed. The construction work was inaugurated by Chandrababu Naidu. There is a museum in this park which give us information about N T Ramarao. As said earlier this memorial was under the Buddha Purnima Project which was given the assignment of beautification of Hussain Sagar Lake, and they were under the Hyderabad Development Authority (HUDA). Later in 2000, the government planned construct a rock garden and IMAX theatres in this garden but this move was hindered by the court since it would badly affect the area near the Hussain Sagar Lake. The government had to spend around INR 40 crores for building the NTR Gardens.
The garden is filled with different plants, and also holds restaurants, souvenir complex, a visitor’s train and a water fall. The beautiful flowers, trees and shrubs present in the park make it more attractive. The park will be opened on all days and it will be working from 12:30 PM to 9:00 PM. The park will be crowded during the evening that is around 6:00 PM. Entry fees of INR 15 for adult and INR 10 for children is levied from the people visiting this park. This place is frequently visited by the people living in the city, which would help them to refresh themselves. Bus services are available to this place from Hyderabad town.
Tourists who feel bored with the rushy and squeezy city life of Hyderabad could visit the NTR Gardens which will provide you calm and pleasant atmosphere. So travelers planning to visit Hyderabad and other areas near this city should include NTR gardens in their plan.