Nurturing plants and maintaining cleanliness at Shivananjappa Park were two major tasks assigned to Sanna Gangamma, a pourakarmika, by the Mandya City Municipal Council (CMC).
Picking up waste, preventing cattle from entering the park, educating visitors against plucking flowers, pruning the plants, keeping the walkways clean, and ensuring miscreants do not smoke or drink inside the park were some of her duties. She had a pleasant surprise on Friday, her penultimate working day, when an MLC and a group of officials arrived to felicitate her.
K.T. Srikante Gowda, MLC, Mandya tahsildar Nagesh and others felicitated Ms. Gangamma for her services rendered towards development of the park. She was honoured with a traditional peta (turban), garland, and an idol of Radha-Krishna.
Ms. Gangamma said she had experienced an unexplainable satisfaction working at the park. She said it would be difficult to detach and that she would frequently visit even after the retirement. Her husband was an employee of Mandya CMC. His untimely death paved the way for her to get this job on compassionate grounds, 23 years ago.
According to the CMC sources, her colleagues and others are planning to felicitate her at the CMC on Saturday.
Members of ‘Shivananjappa Udyanavana Devara Kadu Balaga’ had organised the programme.
