This was their playground!

This was their playground!
TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Bangalore: Residents of Austin Town and surrounding areas had almost heaved a sigh of relief but BBMP put paid to their plan. The Citizens Welfare Association wanted to save the Austin Town playground and even knocked on the doors of the courts. But civic authorities paid no heed to their woes.
BBMP is digging up the existing playground to erect a transit camp for slum-dwellers of Jasma Bhavan slum in Austin Town. They will be shifted to their original locations, once BBMP provides them with all the basic facilities as part of the Basic Services for Urban Poor (BSUP) under the JN-NURM scheme.
“When we protested against the construction activities taken up by BBMP recently, the engineer called off the work. However the BBMP has dug up the playground with police protection,” said a resident.
Residents say BBMP is ignoring zonal regulations, where an area earmarked as a park or playground cannot be used for any other purpose.
Special commissioner Gaurav Gupta told The Times of India that BBMP had surveyed the area to relocate the slum-dwellers. “This is a very sensitive project and we cannot afford to disturb the livelihood of these people. However, we have to shift them to some place temporarily so that we can build permanent concrete structures for them,” he said.
Gupta said the playground was the only open space around Austin Town near the Jasma Bhavan slum. “This facility is only for six months. Also, the camp is coming up in an unused part of the ground. The camp will be brought down once they are moved out,” he added.
The residents are unhappy about the state of affairs. “There is no guarantee that the structure will be brought down. Also, where should the children go to play?” they asked.
Residents knock the doors of high court
The digging up of Austin Town playground to build temporary shelters to accommodate slumdwellers which has already kicked up a controversy has now reached the court. Local residents have filed a PIL in the high court. It will will come up for hearing this week.
The Austin Town MIG Flat Owners Co-operative Society has sought for a directive to authorities to maintain the playground as per layout plan.
According to counsel for the petitioners A V Amarnathan, authorities have again started digging after keeping mum for nearly two weeks. Lieutenant (retd) P C Shekar, president of the society, claims the local MLA and MP are behind this move to relocate slum-dwellers for votebank politics.
Based on a TOI report on May 17 highlighting the issue, the BBMP had stopped the digging at the park-cum-playground.