Anna Nagar Tower Park, officially known as Dr Visvesvaraya Tower Park, is an

urban park An urban park or metropolitan park, also known as a municipal park (North America) or a public park, public open space, or municipal gardens ( UK), is a park in cities and other incorporated places that offer recreation and green space to r ...

in the suburb of

Anna Nagar Anna Nagar (formerly known as Naduvakkarai), is a neighbourhood in the metropolitan city of Chennai, India. Named after former chief minister of Tamil Nadu C. N. Annadurai, it is located in the north-western part of Chennai and forms a part o ...

Chennai Chennai (, ), formerly known as Madras ( the official name until 1996), is the capital city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost Indian state. The largest city of the state in area and population, Chennai is located on the Coromandel Coast of th ...

. It is the tallest park tower in Chennai. The tower has been closed for the public. However, the park is still open.

History

Anna Nagar Tower Park was built in 1968 as part of the World Trade Fair. The park was built by B. S. Abdur Rahman and was inaugurated by former Vice-President V. V. Giri in the presence of the then Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu

C. N. Annadurai Conjeevaram Natarajan Annadurai (15 September 1909 – 3 February 1969), popularly known as Anna also known as Arignar Anna or Perarignar Anna (''Anna, the scholar'' or ''Elder Brother''), was an Indian Tamil politician who served as the fo ...

on 21 January 1968. The park was renovated at a cost of 62 million and reopened in 2010.

Location

Anna Nagar Tower Park is located near the chief roundabout of the neighbourhood (known as the Anna Nagar Roundana) and the Anna Nagar Ayyappan Temple. The park has two entrances. The main entrance is located on the 3rd Main Road next to the Tower Club. The second entrance lies near the Ayyappan Temple on the 6th Main Road.

The park

The park covers an area of 15.35 acres and is one of the few remaining lung spaces in the city. The main component of the park is the 135-foot-tall, 12-storied tower located at the centre of the park. The tower has cyclic ramp spiraling to the top. The tower also has an elevator at the centre. The park, along with the tower, is maintained by the

Chennai Corporation The Greater Chennai Corporation, formerly known as the Corporation of Madras (1688-1996) and Corporation of Chennai (1996-2016), is the civic body that governs the city of Chennai in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. Inaugurated on 29 September ...

. The park has an amphitheatre, a bird-watching deck, badminton courts, play area for kids, a skating rink, a lake, and convenience facilities for the visitors. After the December 2015 rains, the Lake area is full of large fishes, Birds and Turtles and has become a major attraction for the locals Since the local police are not able to effectively manage the tower, entry to the tower has been banned since 2011 due in part to instances of suicides and scribblers, thereby depriving the city of a valuable tourist location. In 2018, the authorities started renovating the tower at a cost of 3 million with a plan to reopen the tower to the public.

Gallery

File:Anna Nagar Tower Park From Entrance 20Jan2013.jpg, The fountain and tower as seen from the entrance File:AnnaNagarTowerPark Plaque at the entrance 20Jan2013.jpg, The plaque near the entrance File:AnnaNagarTowerPark Tower 20Jan2013.jpg, The tower at the park File:AnnaNagarTowerPark Walkway 20Jan2013.jpg, Walkway with the entrance at the background File:AnnaNagarTowerPark Walkway2 20Jan2013.jpg, Walkway seen from near the tower

Nearby attractions

* Aavin Ice Cream Parlor * Tower Club * Connections * Anna Nagar Plaza * Little Italy * AnnaNagar Ayyappan Koil

References