Bund Garden, Pune
City - Pune
State - Maharashtra
Distance from Pune railway station - 2 km
How to reach - Auto rickshaw, cabs , buses from the station
Timing - 6 a.m to 9 p.m.
Bund Garden is located on the right bank of the Mutha river in the city of Pune in the state of Maharashtra. It is at a distance of only 2 km from the station and is easily accessible.
It provides a welcome break from the busy city life to the visitors with its calm and quiet atmosphere that provides peace and relaxation to the mind.
It is full of lush green trees, walking trails, jogging tracks for the fitness conscious and quite a nice playing section for the kids having swings, see-saws, slides and monkey bars. While the parents can relax on the clean and well maintained benches or under the numerous shady trees.
Built by the British, it opened to the public in the year 1869. Previously a number of dams were constructed on the Mutha river by a well known Parsi businessman and philanthropist, Jamsetjee Jejeebhoy so that irrigation water could be supplied to the poor farmers to help in their farming.
The surrounding waste and undeveloped area was converted into a nice garden while a
British Captain Robert S. Sellon of the Royal Engineers designed and constructed a grand arched bridge over the Mula - Mutha river that now connects the Bund Garden to China Garden.
It is also called the Fitzgerald Bridge.
The bridge was the first spandrel arch bridge in the city of Pune and built at a cost of 2 lakh rupees. It has a statue of a Medici lion on both its ends.
The garden is an ideal place to unwind amidst nature, plan and enjoy picnics, take lazy evening strolls, watch the sunset or go for boat rides.
It is an ideal place for kids and adults alike to indulge in racket games like badminton etc.
In the winter months, the trees become home to thousands of migratory birds that provide nature lovers and photographers the opportunity to enjoy and capture their visit in their cameras.
The garden is surrounded by numerous , popular food stalls that provide street food and snacks ranging from chaat items such as Bhel puri, Paani puri, Ragda pattice to South Indian delicacies Idli, Dosa to a variety of sandwiches along with cool Nimbu paani and cold drinks, all at quite a reasonable prices.
Hence the garden is a popular hangout place for kids, their parents, elderly people, youngsters, couples, nature lovers, photographers, walkers, joggers and foodies.
Quite a few cultural activities are also arranged occasionally in the garden in addition to magic shows and horse rides for the kids.
The garden is also called Mahatma Gandhi Udyan as the bridge leads to the Gandhi National Memorial.
All in all, tourists to the city of Pune can catch a relaxing evening in the Bund Garden before continuing on with the rest of their itinerary.
Pictures courtesy - wikipedia and PMC.gov.in
