A statue of a distinguished-looking Mohammad Ali Jinnah greets us at the entrance of the newly inaugurated Jinnah Park in Rawalpindi, against the majestic backdrop of a very long queue of fountains gushing out water forcefully. The essence of this park that has made it truly unparalleled in the country is the conjugation of the grandeur of the Mughal era (many people say it reminds them of Shalimar Gardens in Lahore) with an aura of true Pakistani national identity.
After purchasing a ticket (Rs5 for an individual, Rs5 for a family of more than three and Rs10 for a family of more than 6) at the entrance and stepping down from the stairs, a long, pleasant walk on a marble-floor right next to the flowing fountains awaits us. The sounds of the water and the freshness it emanates makes it one delightful stroll, especially during the long, dreary summer evenings.
Interesting sights catch our eyes along the way, particularly the four enormous bench-shades creatively and beautifully sculptured into headgears that represent the four provinces. The seating arrangement under these shades has also been designed to make one feel at home (depending on which province is ‘home’) with the use of ‘charpais’, ‘gao takiay’ and ‘peeris’ — though one wonders how often the sheet on the ‘charpai’ gets changed!
The walk alongside the fountains ends at the base of a set of wide, imposing stairs that lead up to the grand ‘Unity Towers’. These are four towers, each made of a single column of blocks rising high into the sky with a rectangular bronze block at the base, the surface of which is embossed with scenes from the daily lives of people from each of the four provinces.
One of the most admiring aspects of the design of the park is that a number of old trees have been preserved and intelligently made into focal points in various spots. The walls of the park have interesting touches as well, with lights set into hollow spaces between them, giving the aura of a royal Mughal court. Other attractions for the public include a birds aviary, separate fitness centres for men and women, a jogging track, cricket pitches, a canteen, a skating rink and a children’s play area for families only (a young man visibly preoccupied with melancholy thoughts was stopped by the security guard as he strolled towards the play area and ushered towards the extremely large clay pots in another direction, as if they were a better diversion!).
The list of attractions does not end here; there is much more to come, we are told. The first that starts off some major salivary gland outflow is the arrival of McDonalds to the twin cities (what on earth took so long!?). Pappasallis would also feature on the neat, sprawling lawns of the park not too long from now, as well as a Cineplex! Like the traffic or not, Islamabadites would now have to come to Rawalpindi more often.
The only reservation one feels while walking around the park is the public’s blatant refusal to use dustbins and their determination to destroy the beauty of a public facility that has been opened for their own attraction.
On the whole, the experience of visiting Jinnah Park is extremely pleasant, for which the authorities deserve applause. Rawalpindi has finally come up with a place that people from the twin cities as well as those from out-of-town are discussing with interest and local Pindites are actually proud of!
