Only 100 of the 284 public gardens have toilet facilities while only 55 have drinking water facilities. Of the 100 gardens with toilet facilities, 16 have pay-and-use facilities in AMC’s Public Garden.
The West Zone in Ahmedabad has the most gardens, with 76, followed by the North West Zone (64), North Zone (37), South Zone (31), South West Zone (29), East Zone (27) and Central Zone (20). Ahmedabad is divided into seven zones by the AMC.
Five of the total 18 restrooms in the West Zone are pay-and-use facilities. Each North and North West Zone has 17 restrooms, with three Pay & Use facilities in the latter and none in the former.
While the other zones have restroom facilities, including Pay and Use ones in single digits, the East Zone has 14 toilet blocks with none of them being Pay and Use.
There are 15 gardens with access to drinking water in the West Zone, 13 in the North West Zone, and 11 in the North Zone. There are few drinking water facilities in the remaining zones.
It is not true that only gardens larger than a certain square metre are equipped with restrooms, according to sources in AMC’s garden department. Some gardens are just spread out over a 500 square metre area, while others are only used nearby residents. About 30 of the 284 gardens are cared for by AMC. The large gardens typically have all the amenities, according to the source.
He said many gardens are maintained by companies under the Public Private Partnership model. When pointed out that the AMC is the final authority in approving the garden design, the source said toilet and other facilities can be incorporated if there is a demand for the same. “A survey is carried out first and then a decision is taken,” said the source.
An official from the garden department said sometimes people don’t use the gardens for more than two hours. “Gardens that lack toilet facilities often have such facilities provided by the AMC in nearby areas. A lot of things including financial constraints have to be taken into consideration,” a source said.
Shailesh Kapadia, 59, resident of Sakal Apartments, said, “Often such facilities are not cleaned which results in a stink. It is better not to have a toilet than to have one without any maintenance. Drinking water facilities can be set up but again it is not advisable if it is not going to be maintained and is not hygienic.”