KARACHI: First ever erection of animatronics replicas of wild animals at Jahangir Park, formerly known as Behramji Bagh will provide the visitors a splendor change.
The engineers of Karachi Development Authority (KDA) have been busy in the completion for a new face of Park at a cost of Rs 200 million since six months, officials of Project Director under ‘Revival of Empress Market and Jahangir Park Smart Saddar’ project informed.
The animal stuffs are being imported from China and likely to land at Karachi Port in next two weeks while around 80 percent job on the project has been completed, they informed.
More than 17 models of animatronics including giraffe, dinosaur, elephant, chimpanzee, rhinoceros and others will be displayed to amuse visitors at the Park.
A forest portion in the Park has also been allocated where aviaries would be an addition for visitors.
Provisions of family-park, children playing area, rain forest cafe, rehabilitation of library, speakers’ corner, amphitheatre etc will turn the Park a place to visit, officials asserted. No one can enter in the Park without family, it is obligatory.
The Park will likely to be open for public around this Ramadhan, while a nominal gate fee will be charged from the visitors.
Land was donated by Khan Bahadur Behramji Jahangir Rajkotwala, a resident to Karachi and a member of Sindh Sabah. Behramji Bagh, was inaugurated on Naorouzday in 1883 and a pavilion was added in 1920 for holding cricket matches for local clubs.
Lt.Col C R Rubie, a British Army man played role in promotion of cricket in Karachi and in recognition to his services after his death in 1939, a tournament named Rubie Shield Cricket was initiated and played at this ground.
Local Government Department (LGD) Sindh in coordination with KDA is working to provide fresh look to Park. Saddar will be made a pedestrian zone afterwards.
On April 5, 2006, Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry, the then Chief Justice of Pakistan, on a Suo Moto notice, had directed the provincial chief secretary to ‘ensure that no tree of Jehangir Park was chopped nor should the park be used for any other purpose’.
To comply with the orders, the KMC had removed encroachment, commercial activities and drug dens from the Park.