Pet park to come up in city under Singara Chennai 2.0

CHENNAI: Pet lovers and owners will soon get some exclusive space in the bustling city where they can play and spend time with their pets as the Greater Chennai Corporation has decided to create a pet park under the Singara Chennai 2.0 project.

The decision was taken in a meeting held at the Ripon Buildings a few days ago. "Singara Chennai 2.0 will comprise eight components to address the needs of the city. As part of the health and wellness component, a pet park will be created, " a Corporation official said.

Singara Chennai 2.0 is an extension of the Singara Chennai project, which was launched during the previous DMK regime and discontinued after AIADMK came to power 10 years ago. With the DMK at the helm again, the civic body has commenced the implementation of the project.

"The park will have pet-friendly features and play equipment. Pet owners can bring their animals to the park and engage them in physical activities. This will boost the mental healths of both pets and owners. It will also have a pet clinic, pet shops and other facilities. However, the location is yet to be decided as there are many rounds of talks pending," the official added. Under Singara Chennai 2.0, the civic body will execute projects on mobility and transportation, beautification, heritage conservation, e-governance and innovation apart from health and wellness. "As a part of heritage conservation, a project has been proposed to renovate the hanging garden (maadi poonga) in Royapuram. The maadi poonga was created during the British era and is now in poor condition," he said.

Another civic official said that the Corporation should invest in projects that would improve living conditions rather than meaningless beautifications. "It is of no use if we lit railway stations with laser beams when homeless persons sleep around the same railway stations," he stated.