GUWAHATI: Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Sunday will inaugurate a new Botanical Garden at Fancy Bazaar, and it will bring an end to the chronicles of trauma and torture at the British-era jail.
To boost green infrastructure of Guwahati, the newly developed Botanical Garden in the Fancy Bazar area will be inaugurated in the old Guwahati Central Jail premises.
The Central Jail in Guwahati was set up in 1881 at Fancy Bazaar with a capacity of 500 inmates. In fact, Fancy Bazaar derieved its name from the gallows of the Guwahati Central Jail. Hanging means phansi in Assamese.
With the inauguration of the new Botanical Garden, the British-era chronices of trauma and torture will all fade away.
Sharing a captivating video of the garden, the Chief Minister expressed his enthusiasm on turning Guwahati greener and cleaner. This will be Guwahati’s second botanical garden, following the Assam State Zoo and Botanical Garden.
“Built in the Old Jail Campus of Fancy Bazar, the Botanical Garden will greatly enhance our city’s green cover, and augment the mesmerising beauty of Guwahati,” Assam minister Ashok Singhal said on a micro-blogging site.
In August 2021, Chief Minister Sarma had laid the foundation stone for the botanical garden, backed by an investment of ₹38.51 crore.
Designed to serve as a refreshing lung space amidst the urban landscape, the garden is structured to provide residents with open areas to inhale fresh air, right in the city’s heart.
“The garden will not only beautify the surroundings but also introduce recreational spaces for morning and evening strolls, winding pathways, serene lotus ponds, and additional facilities like eateries,” a statement from the Assam Chief Minister’s office claimed.
The Assam government wanted to open the new botanical garden on August 15 this year. But because of some technical issues, the project got delayed by about 45 days for the inauguration.
Spanning approximately 30 bighas, the garden houses two serene ponds carved out in 12 bighas of the old jail premises.
