Basundhara Park: A land where Pokhara rests

Perched on the edge of Phewa Lake, boasting greenery and picturesque surroundings, is the spacious Basundhara Park, a refuge for the people of Pokhara, especially those close to Lakeside. The park can be seen just below the road as one walks along his way to Barahi Ghat, where Taal Barahi is located. Right after walking past the slope of Baidam, one can feel that he has completely entered new territory. In a way, Lakeside epitomizes the city’s elegance. To say Lakeside has made Pokhara a grand place would be an understatement. Phewa Lake is an instrumental addition to Pokhara, making the city stand out among others. And in the heart of this cosmopolitan Lakeside is a lush park bearing the name ‘Basundhara Park’ that sees hundreds of visitors daily. 

Rammaya Gurung, 37, carries a basket on her back and walks toward Basundhara Park to settle on the edge of the park with the aim of selling chatpate, her modest business opening only after sunset every day. “It is only after 5 that people start to stream in,” says Gurung, opening a packet of noodles to mix up. A 7-year-old Binita clings to her mother’s kurta as the mother asks her customer about their spice preferences. A shy girl only smiles, refusing to answer the questions posed by customers. “My husband is working in the Gulf, and it is how I supplement his income,” says Gurung with a smile. 

A few meters away from Gurung’s junction is a Madhesi woman involved in the same business. However, her story is different. She looks down as she recalls how she lost her husband to the coronavirus pandemic. After the untimely demise of her husband, she couldn’t tolerate the harassment of her in-laws, so she took her belongings from her home district Saptari and followed her sister’s family to Pokhara, who has been running a juice shop in Malepatan for over seven years. Talking about the venue where she sets up her business day after day, she says, “At first, I was puzzled about where I should set up my chatpate stall, but once my sister showed me around this park, I decided this would be the perfect venue with the flow of so many visitors.” However, business, be it big or small, the woman says, is all about perseverance and patience. For women like her, the park has opened up the opportunity to earn and stand on their own feet.

One doesn’t need to pay rent while setting up such a business in the free spaces, so the lesser expenses mean that they can save up a good amount of money with low investment. Items they sell on streets and in parks, however, deteriorate one’s health if consumed regularly. Though the public is well aware that the consumption of chatpate is not good for health, the charm of such stalls in Basundhara Park is apparent. The best thing about these small business owners is that they have kept dustbins around the stalls to avoid people from throwing away papers and plastics. As a result, the sidewalks of Basundhara Park are spotless. 

Recently, a circular trail has been built inside the park, and this development has spurred mixed opinions among the general public. Jivan Pokhrel, a regular visitor to the park, says that the concrete trail has tarnished the greenery, making the park look dull and less natural. The trail is always occupied with joggers of all ages. The benefit of having a concrete trail is that joggers don’t have to suffer from muddy patches during the monsoon season. 

The park has changed a lot from what it used to be. Not many years ago, the park was plain, but now there are uneven surfaces all across the park, mostly in the southeast direction. Once, a dozer had intervened for construction work, and it affected the aesthetic beauty of the park. Since then, the southeast area of the park has been deserted, with the majority of people occupying the remaining spaces for picnics and gatherings. Schoolkids, families, and other informal groups often come to the park with home-cooked and packaged foods. While the sidewalks of the park are neat, the core area in the middle is always littered with wrappers, plastic plates, and bottles. “People have become educated, but they still can’t manage the waste they have produced. Basundhara Park is a pride of Lakeside, so waste management must be top-notch in order to preserve its beauty,” says Sanju Shrestha, who owns a beauty parlor near Basundhara Park. 

For Subash Poudel, Basundhara Park is more than a place to chill out, as he has been clicking photographs of his clients for some years in the park. Especially newlyweds promptly agree to a photoshoot at this venue, says Poudel. The landscape offered by the park has inspired photographers to come and capture photos against the breathtaking backdrop of Phewa Lake. 

Like Poudel, many people from different professions have chosen Basundhara Park as an unofficial workplace. The park authorities have shown flexibility by allowing people to utilize the space as they like. It is understandable that public parks are made accessible for the general public, but freedom must not come at the cost of the park’s sanitation. 

The present condition of the toilet in Basundhara Park speaks volumes about the authorities’ insouciance. Although the toilet looks large from the outside, it is not in a usable state. It’s high time that the authorities started focusing on the park’s sanitation by either revamping the old toilet or building a new one. 

Lately, a large number of youth groups have made Basundhara Park their playground, which must be urgently discouraged, and the authorities must impose restrictions on intense sports activities, allowing only light activities such as jogging and stretching. As the park is often crammed with people doing different activities for refreshment, there is a high chance that sports activities might injure people involved in their own recreations. The metropolitan area, along with the local government, must build an alternative ground around Lakeside to prevent people from playing at Basundhara Park. It should be clearly circulated that the park is only built for refreshment, and people from Pokhara should be mindful of the fact that Basundhara Park is associated with the tourism of Lakeside. The onus is on Pokhara residents to take care of Basundhara Park, which is one of the key attractions for the tourists coming to visit Pokhara.