Boa scare shuts civic park in south Delhi

A municipal park in south Delhi's Malviya Nagar has been shut after a sand boa was reportedly sighted on its premises, the area councillor today said.
The reptile was first seen by local residents who brought it to the notice of ward councillor Nandini Sharma.
Sharma, a councillor from Geetanjali Enclave, today raised the matter in the meeting of the Standing Committee of the South Delhi Municipal Corporation.
"The sand boa was first seen in the Radha Raman Park last month around August 19 and few days later, drivers, who park vehicles outside the park, complained that it was again sighted. Following such complaints, we have closed the park.

"The park, spread over one acre, in the heart of the area, is meant especially for children, so we cannot take the risk," she said.
Sharma said, initially, she had reported the matter to the higher authorities in the SDMC and also to a wildlife body.

"Today, the standing committee chairman directed the higher authorities to look into the matter seriously," she said.
In the meeting, the SDMC Standing Committee Chairman Bhupender Gupta also claimed that the books for Class I students of English and Maths subjects in the MCD-run schools were of "difficult level" and proposed to get it replaced.

The SDMC is planning to open one school in each of its four zones which will cater to the students of Class 6 to Class 8.