Tome And Plume: Verdant Campuses In City Soothe Tired Eyes
Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh): The most thoroughgoing ascetic could feel that he had a natural right to wander on Egdon—he was keeping within the line of legitimate indulgence when he laid himself open to influences such as these.
Colours and beauties so far subdued were, at least, the birthright of all. Only in summer days of highest feather did its mood touch the level of gaiety – The Return of the Native, Thomas Hardy
The verdant campuses of Bhopal, like any other places in the city, are soothing to the aching eyes of a visitor.
Talks about the greenery of Bhopal remain incomplete if one does not cite the verdancy of Barkatullah University (BU), previously known as Bhopal University.
A long-metalled way, whose both sides are lined up with big trees and bougainvillaea plants, which blossom in the blooming months of March and April, leads to the office of the university.
Because of the dark green woods, the campus remains cool even in summers when the city experiences more than 42 degrees Celsius that melt the asphalt roads.
In March and April, an unseen hand seems to have painted plants with various tinges on both sides of the road that leads to the inside of the campus.
Nature, however, begins to colour the plants from the first week of February when the last breeze of winter retires, welcoming the gentle draught of the spring.
The campus is lush green, and in many places, there are thickets from where the chants of birds – in season and out of season – are heard.
Just as the monsoon begins, the campus becomes greener and the thickets thicker, but it remains bottle green throughout the year. Couples in their salad days are seen inside the brush, talking to each other without bothering about the gonging clocks.
The BU campus, whether one is its student or not, can enjoy its verdancy to soothe his eyes tired of the smoke belching out of the vehicles from dawn until sunset. It will be a fine experience to share with friends.
If one does not want to go to the BU campus because of traffic congestion during the peak hours, one can visit the campus of the Motilal Nehru Vigyan Mahavidyalaya (MNVM) near the police headquarters.
From the gate of the college to its main building, there is a lane which has three turns – one on the left and two on the right. On the left stands a row of buildings surrounded by small and big trees. The right turn leads to the end of the boundary wall. As one goes there, the Lower Lake reveals itself.
The lane gets narrower and slopes down at the end. Its both sides are covered with bushes and trees. From a little distance, it looks as mysterious as described in the novels. At the passing of a breeze the trees sob and moan. One can sit on the side of the lonely lane and enjoy the rustling noise of winds mingling with the warbles of birds.
The campus of Hamidia College, though situated in a crowded area of the city, has maintained a strange tranquillity inside it. As one crosses the main gate of the college, he finds the vast campus and its boundary adjacent to the Lower Lake.
There is a garden, and a visitor can sit under any tree and enjoy the beauty of the lake. The clamours of vehicles and the noise of vendors do not reach there. Perhaps the campus of the Indian Institute of Forest Management is one of the most beautiful places in the city.
The beauty of the institute is out of the ordinary because it stands on a hill from where one can see the Bhadbhada barrage, which checks the overflowing Upper Lake. It is in Nehru Nagar.
A raceway of Bhadbhada barrage coils around the IIFM hill. Its three sides are surrounded by water. When it rains, the area looks like a painting, and one feels as if he has left the world of the living and is sitting on an island.
The design of the IIFM building is based on the historical Mandu town of MP. Nevertheless, one needs permission to move around the campus.
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