Today, she is a mother of two children who have no less passion for outdoor games. However, the only space left for them to play is the terrace of their house. [break]
“I strongly believe that playing is the basic need of children. It keeps them physically and mentally fit. However, there is no space around where we can send our children to play,” said Shahi, a local of Kalimati.
Her kids, 13-year-old Ashesh and 7-year-old Ashim who study at Modern Indian School and Mitra Secondary School respectively, mostly play on the terrace of their house, according to Shahi. For obvious reasons, playing on the roof does not leave them with many options when it comes to choosing what they want to play.
“Our terrace is quite big but it cannot be a substitution of a playground. Had there been playground, would the boys stay at home and cling to computer and TV so much?” said the mother. “Our kids are missing so much activity and fun in life in lack of playgrounds,” she added.
PHOTO: NIRJANA SHARMA
But the situation is even worse for those who live in rented flats when compared with those who own a house, thinks Neha Sharma, a media personality.
While house owners can use open spaces of their house the way they want, the tenants must put up with some limits and "it makes raising a child in rented apartments difficult."
“In your own house, your children can shout or run around freely. But as someone living in a rented flat you have to be careful,” said Sharma, mother of an 8-year-old. “When my son makes noise, I have to shout at him. I know it is normal for him to behave like that at this age, but I do not want to hear any complain from the owner,” said Sharma, who plans to build a house in the valley in near future.
With more and more people wanting to build their own house, even the outskirts of Kathmandu are turning into concrete jungle, notes Biju Maharjan of Panga, Kirtipur.
According to Maharjan, who is a plumber, all the plots in Panga have been purchased by "outsiders" and the area would be crammed with houses in a year or two.
“There is hardly any plot left now. In the long run, there will be no space left here even to spit,” he said. Maharjan feels that his daughter, who is an eighth grader, has had a different childhood than his, all due to lack of space to play.
“In our time, there were open fields where we could play football, volleyball and so on. Girls would play some other games. But my daughter hardly has friends outside school and sports is not part of her life,” Maharjan said.
Children in Kathmandu are forced to live an inactive life due to congested homes, neighborhoods and schools, said child psychologist and founder of national institute of psychology Ganga Pathak.
This not only causes the children to be obese but also hyperactive and unsocial, she warns.
An aerial view of Samakhusi area in Kathmandu. (PHOTO: CHANDR SHEKAR KARKI)
“The rapid and unplanned urbanization has made our life inconvenient and it affects the kids most. When they do not play enough, they tend to show behavioral problems which have already become evident in the core areas of the Valley,” Pathak said.
The number of children being brought to her institute is growing every day. Pathak reveals that kids losing interest in studies is not seen as a sign of problem by parents who feel alarmed only when the kids start hating books.
“On the one hand, they have tedious routine to follow at school and on the other, they have no outdoor life. Children are literally squeezed between what they want to do and what they are forced to do,” Pathak explained. “What parents and teachers should understand is that for the perfect coordination of the body and mind, kids need to play several outdoor as well as indoor games. Games not only give them good health but also instills in them team spirit and help them learn social manners,” she stressed.
No doubt, playground is something that has to be ensured at any cost for the sake of kids. But while rampant construction of towering buildings and smaller houses continue to turn the valley into a dense concrete jungle, nobody seems to have so much time to think about the young ones and their basic needs.
Environment Division chief at Kathmandu Metropolitan City Rabin Man Shrestha said that there are no plans in the pipeline for building children´s park or playground for kids. “We have seen well managed children´s park in other countries. But we do not have any plan to build them here for now. The major problem is the lack of space,” he said.
Shrestha, however, said the government could manage at least few of the parks that are already there. “Places like Balaju park, Rantna park and Shankha park can have a separate facilities for kids.”
Meanwhile, Sabnam Shahi insisted that the government needs to manage at least one children´s park or playground in every ward. “It is possible if the government will take the issue seriously. It would bring a great joy in the lives of our kids.”
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