Palace Gardens: Only a dream?

The long standing state government proposal to convert the Bangalore Palace into a museum and the rest of the over 660-acre Palace Grounds in the heart of the city into Palace Gardens is unlikely to be realized with the interminable property dispute, between the state and the descendants of the Wodeyar dynasty of Mysore,in the Supreme Court. The grounds are in shambles with several encroachments including an amusement park, a bowling alley, a school, an automobile workshop and sundry other things. The grounds also play host to several exhibitions and expositions round the year and also host all the concerts featuring international artistes like Roger Waters, Bryan Adams, Deep Purple, Scorpions, Elton John and more recently Enrique Eglesias. One hopes that the authorities clear the grounds of all the encroachments and dedicate a part of the land for exhibitions, as Bangalore sorely lacks a permanent trade fair complex, and the rest is safeguarded as much needed lungspace for the city.