Inspired by global parks like New York’s Central Park and London’s Hyde Park, Thane in Maharashtra has a large urban park known as ‘NaMo Gardens’. Now, to spread them in various regions, on the occasion of the Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde announced the development of ‘NaMo gardens’ in all municipal councils and nagar panchayats of the state. Scroll down for more details.
₹394 Crore Sanctioned For NaMo Gardens In Maharashtra
NaMo Gardens, also known as NaMo Grand Central Park, is a 20-acre green space in Thane. It is designed to be one of the most well-planned natural spaces in the area. The park has over 2,400 newly planted trees, while many old ones have been preserved. Visitors can also spot around 100 species of birds and butterflies. Now, to give access to similar surroundings to many other people in the region, the Maharashtra government has decided to build another 394 gardens, each allocated a budget of ₹1 crore, reported The Times of India.
While announcing this new decision, Eknath Shinde referred this initiative as a gift on the occasion of PM Narendra Modi’s 75th birthday. These parks will be named ‘Namo Udyan’, and they will be developed within a year. Shinde explained that after the NaMo Gardens are developed, competitions will be organised at the divisional level to judge their quality. The top three municipal councils or nagar panchayats in each division will receive prize money, with Rs 5 crore for the first place, Rs 3 crore for the second place, and Rs 1 crore for the third place. The price will not be given in cash but instead as additional development funds.
Financial Challenges In Maharashtra
The state government has now decided to limit new spending on public works like roads, bridges, and other infrastructure. This decision is followed by looking at the financial challenges. In April, my Deputy CM, Ajit Pawar, presented the budget. It showed that state debt is expected to reach Rs 9.3 lakh crore in 2025-26. It is 10% higher than the debt of Rs 8.39 lakh crore in 2024-25.
Now, even though the state is under financial pressure, they are moving towards the massive development of NaMo Gardens. The focus is on providing green space accessible to more people and helping them breathe fresh air.
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Cover Image Courtesy: NaMo Garden Central Park/ Website