7 theme parks sanctioned to be developed in Visakhapatnam

The Greater Visakhapatnam Municipal Corporation (GVMC), in a council meeting on Saturday, has given the go-ahead to proposals for seven theme parks in Visakhapatnam. An interesting one, out of the seven proposed theme parks, is the dogs theme park, which is slated to come up at Ratnagiri Layout. 

For the development of these seven theme parks, a budget of Rs. 12.71 crore has been allocated. These seven theme parks are – sports theme park at Bakkannapalem, yoga and meditation theme park at Shipyard Layout, dogs theme park at Ratnagiri Layout, rainbow theme park at MVP Sector-11, palm gardens theme park at Yendada, butterfly theme park at MSR Layout and another undesignated park at Ward 14. 

Though the proposals for these theme parks in Visakhapatnam, were passed with a majority, the move has drawn ire from opposition parties in the city. Many leaders from the opposition parties have criticised this development, alleging that GVMC is allocating Rs. 12.71 crore for developing theme parks while neglecting civic issues in the city. They have pointed out that persistent rainfall in the city in the past few weeks has left the city roads in a bad condition, with potholes and overflowing drainages.

The news on the proposed theme parks in Visakhapatnam had first arrived in June 2021. Back then, GVMC had proposed a total of ten theme parks in the city, with an estimated budget of Rs. 5.1 crore for the first phase itself. 

GVMC is also planning to develop open spaces in the city into parks, which is expected to be completed by December 2021. Accordingly, GVMC officials have identified 800 open spaces in the city which are suitable for this initiative. This project has been given a budget of Rs. 13 crore and will involve the installation of a range of facilities like walking tracks, open gym, etc.