The perfect play area at Juhu, Mumbai

New India CHS at Juhu, Mumbai

Located in an upscale neighbourhood of Mumbai’s Juhu Vile Parle Development (JVPD) scheme, the New India CHS garden is a peaceful leisure zone for several visitors that frequent it to play, exercise, or relax. Spread over nearly 10,000 square feet, the garden is maintained by New India CHS and is open to the public for free. The lush green park accounts for one plot among the 30-odd plots that make up the New India CHS.

Aesthetically designed with 70 percent open space, the park has play areas, sidewalks, trees, hedges, and benches. The star attraction of the park is its colourful play area surface, the Playsafe Premium flooring from Ecoflex.

In May this year, New India CHS covered 3,500 square feet of the park area with Playsafe Premium flooring. In fact, it had first installed flooring from Ecoflex nearly eight years ago at the park. “We were happy with the quality and durability of the flooring. Although Playsafe was priced a little higher than other brands, its quality and after sales service was unmatched,” said Chand Kejriwal, a committee member at New India CHS.

Safety and hygiene first

Ensuring safety for kids was the prime criterion when it came to finalising the play area flooring. “Controlling children when they are playing is a daunting task. With soft flooring in place, parents are reassured that no harm can occur even if a child were to take a tumble,” said Beena Kapoor, another committee member at New India CHS.

The garden had a grass lawn earlier. However, with kids playing on the turf, it had turned barren. “We did not want a sand pit either since sand degrades in the absence of thorough and regular cleaning. Sand can harbour insects, and even cats use it as a litter box!” Kapoor continued: “We chose the Playsafe flooring, as it met our requirement of safety with hygiene. The floor remains dust-free, and even babies can crawl on it.”

New India CHS opted for bright colours and an attractive butterfly theme for Playsafe flooring. The garden also sports playground equipment like the Spider Web nets that children use to climb on. Kapoor informed, “While climbing these net installations or when using swings, kids can slip and fall. Playsafe flooring is forgiving; it cushions their falls. Even after landing on the floor, kids are totally unhurt.”

Lovely shapes at New India CHS Park

Unique landscaping

The park underwent a redesign about a year ago. This exercise was completed by May 2014. During the redesign, New India CHS had to ensure that the land was hard and flat before the Playsafe flooring could be installed. Adequate drainage mechanism had to be provided to allow water to seep through the permeable flooring. Ecoflex conducted an extensive survey of the area and supervised the land remodelling before the installation. Playsafe installation was completed within a fortnight and cost Rs 15 lakh to the society.

Rolling mounds, covered with the Playsafe flooring, are unique to the New India CHS garden landscape. “We elevated one portion of the park and completely covered it with Playsafe flooring.  Now, children can safely climb, jump, roll about, or simply lie down on the mounds. In fact, even adults can be seen reclining against them,” informed architect Gaurish Chandawarkar, Director, Design Cell, who did the landscaping for the park, and recommended Ecoflex for its quality and service.

“When it comes to ensuring safety and hygiene for play areas, soft flooring is preferred. Ecoflex has a keen understanding of the product, an in-depth knowledge of the technicalities, and it offers a solution after weighing all the pros and cons,” Chandawarkar said.

Inspiring confidence

Victor D’Mello, President, Sales and Marketing, Ecoflex Surfaces Pvt Ltd, said, “The recent installation at New India CHS was a repeat order for us. The safety and hygiene aspects of the flooring coupled with easy maintenance and prompt after sales service has inspired confidence among our customers.”

New India CHS seem to be happy with the post-sales service offered by Ecoflex. Sometime back, a few cracks had developed in certain portions of the park flooring, but Ecoflex promptly resolved the issue. Besides, the Playsafe flooring is also easy to clean and maintain, informed Kejriwal. “A simple wash with soap and water suffices,” she said.

The park draws people not only from the JVPD area but also from Santacruz and Oshiwara. It also gets its fair share of celebrity visitors including Aishwarya Rai, Shilpa Shetty, and Twinkle Khanna, amongst others!

A Juhu resident Asma Ladha, who frequents the park with her toddler nieces, commented: “We prefer visiting this park because the play area is covered with soft flooring which is anti-slip and safe for kids. It minimizes the need for adult-supervision and we can keep an eye on kids without worrying unduly.”

The New India CHS Park continues to enhance the quality of life of its visitors.