Park becomes parking lot, BBMP looks other way

Park becomes parking lot, BBMP looks other way
DH News Service, Bangalore:
A land earmarked by the Bangalore Development Authority (BDA) as a park and playground is being used as an illegal parking lot right under the nose of the civic authorities.


The maintenance of the land was entrusted to the Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) that too looked the other way round when it came to its upkeep. Result? As night falls, the vacant land turns into an unauthorised parking lot benefiting business establishments in its vicinity.

The land in question is HT (High-Tension) Park, 4th C Cross, 5th Block, Koramangala.

Meant to be a park and playground, it is being used as a parking lot by a popular restaurant and shops in the area, in blatant violation of the law. The land is a picture of neglect with parthenium weeds, shrubs all over the land.

Residents of the area told Deccan Herald that the land was meant for a park when the locality was formed, in 1972. “They may have put the plan on hold because of an overhead high tension electrical cable/pole in the area.
During the weekends, especially nights a lot of cars are parked on the vacant land,” said a businessman.

Notification

When this was brought to the notice of BBMP commissioner S Subramanya, he said the Palike is in the process of issuing a notification to declare the area as an official parking lot.

“We recently inspected the area and are aware of the unauthorised parking that’s going on there. An open drainage that runs below the land and an overhead high tension cable makes it unsuitable for a park or playground. We will soon notify the area for a parking lot,” said the commissioner.