Born in the family of farmers at Chotasan village, Sabarkantha in 1942, Patel's association with Vadodara began in 1979. ``The bad state of bandstand in the Sayajibaug brought me here,'' he reminences. ``I wondered how could the garden laid by former ruler Sir Sayajirao Gaekwad the III be in such a neglected condition,'' he says.

The increasing number of visitors to the Sayajibaug led to laying the Ajwa-Vrindavan gardens near the Ajwa reservoir, about 30 kilometers from the city, Patel says, adding he took inspiration from the famous Vrindavan Gardens of Mysore to set up the whole place at a cost of Rs 8 lakh.

The Gardens, he says, were set up from scrap. The electricity poles were set up from damaged streetlight poles and old pipes were used to make grills and sports equipment for children. Though a small beginning, it paved the way for more and nearly half of the city's 50 parks and gardens were laid during Patel's tenure.

``Necessity is the mother of invention,'' is how he explains using scrap material. Scrap material has been also used in other gardens including the one in Gotri and Sama, besides contributions from the general public and some companies.

Patel even saw to it that each labourer employed to work on the Vrindavan garden was well-trained, to an extend that he even knew the scientific names of the plants. Patel personally demonstrates how to hold a scissor and trim the additional growth of a plant.

A graduate in Agriculture, Patel has no regrets about leaving the post of an estate officer (garden) in Amul, Anand before joining the Vadodara Municipal Corporation, though the former paid him more.

His only regret is that he couldn't set up a Botanical Garden during his tenure. Although the foundation stone was laid in 1980s, lack of funds put a stop to its construction activity.

Today, after working for more than 24 year -- right from his first job as agriculture officer in Lalbaug, Jamnagar -- Patel is a tired man and has sought voluntary retirement despite two years of service to go.

``I have served the gardens putting in more than 16 hours a day. After retirement I will go to my village and serve my father,'' he says.

Patel prefers staying away from publicity. ``The moment you take credit your downfall begins,'' he says.

And who will look after the city's gardens after him? ``People of Vadodara have preserved the gardens well and I hope they continue to do so in the future.'' ``After me, someone else will come and take charge,'' he says coolly.