MANGALURU: Balavana, a park in Puttur, dedicated to Kannada litterateur and Jnanpith award winner Kota Shivaram Karanth remains under-utilised. Just two programmes are held each year for the public, despite around Rs 80 lakh having been spent on maintenance and upgradation of infrastrucure on the campus.
The legacy of repository of knowledge and keen imparter of knowledge to children during his lifetime, was to live on with the Shivaram Karanth Park, a six acre campus donated by the family to the Kannada and Cultural department, about two decades ago. However, it has come to a standstill. Except for a swimming pool and a little play area, life os Shivaram Karanth is yet to be revived within these boundaries.
A skating rink that was built in 2002, was converted into an art gallery a decade later. The building has an attached library, and both are in dilapidated condition with cracked walls and birds nesting in the space meant for honing artistic talent.