Semmozhi Poonga will be open to public from December 1, says Minister K.N. Nehru

Semmozhi Poonga will be opened to the public from December 1 following its inauguration by Chief Minister M.K. Stalin on November 25, Minister for Municipal Administration K.N. Nehru said in Coimbatore city on Saturday.

After inspecting the ongoing works at the 45-acre Semmozhi Poonga being developed on the Central Prison grounds in Gandhipuram at a cost of ₹208.5 crore, he told reporters that ticketing arrangements and a few regulatory procedures would be completed after the inauguration, and that the park would then be opened for public use from December 1.

When asked whether Corporation personnel were overstretched due to the project’s workload in its final phase, and whether the contractor had sought an extension instead of adhering to the inauguration schedule, Mr. Nehru denied both points. He stated that the work was being executed solely by the contractor awarded the tender and rejected allegations that multiple contractors were being deployed to rush the work.

Responding to queries about the pace of work and the compressed timeline, he said the project was already nearing completion and the remaining works were being accelerated to meet the inauguration schedule. He added that while all park-related works would be completed, the convention centre would require additional time.

To a question on whether the Coimbatore Corporation had obtained the required permissions — including fire safety approval, electricity board clearance, environmental clearance and other statutory approvals — he said that all clearances would be obtained from the respective departments and that the Chief Minister would not inaugurate a project without the necessary legal permissions.

On entry fees, he said that the rates would be lower than the amounts previously approved by the Corporation council.

He added that during the inauguration, the Chief Minister would interact with school students and persons with disabilities, along with 150 prominent individuals from Coimbatore selected by the district administration. Former Minister V. Senthil Balaji and senior officials were present during the inspection.