BANGALORE: Cricket nets and structures that sprang up three years ago for a summer camp at Jayanagar stadium remain in place even today.
The Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA) decided to set up a camp for five years at the Kittur Rani Chennamma Stadium, the space being provided by the Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BBMP).
M N Nagaraju, the then leader of the house in the BBMP and the local corporator, had said, "We are ready to provide nearly half an acre in the stadium next to the athletic track for the summer coaching camps.
"The idea came up after I heard from the parents who couldn't pay the steep fees of more than `10,000 at private sports academies. After a round of talks with KSCA officials, we decided summer coaching would be provided without charging a single rupee."
Five turf wickets were consequently set up. But what Nagaraju did not mention was that these wickets would be right in the middle of the ground, preventing boys and girls from playing other sports.
Is it Partisan?
The summer that year and the next are long gone but the wickets and the nets haven't gone away. The ground is occupied all through the year.
What if the football association comes forward with a similar request to organise camps? Will the BBMP agree?
After all, when the ground was full of stones, rocks and boulders, it was Olympian Ahmed Hussain who made it usable by conducting football camps for children in the early 1980s. The C division football group league matches have also been conducted here.
The stadium is spread over 10 acres and has a skating rink, an athletics cinder track, basketball courts and other sporting infrastructure.
But construction in some form or the other has reduced open spaces into virtually nothing. If the KSCA nets occupy one half of the ground, cricket nets of private clubs occupy a quarter of it in another corner.
Hardly half the ground is available for football and hockey. Many schools used to conduct their annual school sports meet at the venue. But not any more as the nets prevent use of the space necessary for march pasts and other sports.
Private Club
A huge portion has been occupied by a private club. A hall has been constructed adjacent to the club and another facility is being built near the basketball courts.
There were at least three courts where ball badminton used to be played by Merry Go Round and Kohinoor Ball Badminton clubs but that is a thing of the past.The Mayor's Cup volleyball tournament was held annually at the venue with about eight or 10 courts, but that too is not possible now.
Why cater to the needs of sports associations that have the funds to buy their own plots, stadium users wonder. In the days of ever-shrinking playgrounds, what exists must be well maintained and accessible to sports enthusiasts, they say.
After all, almost every sports association has been granted land on lease by the state government. Why encroach on something meant for the general public?
Kumble's Plan
Byrasandra ward councillor Nagaraju said, "When Anil Kumble was president of KSCA, he and Javagal Srinath approached the BBMP and said they would conduct free cricket training camps. The KSCA spent `25 lakh to set up the infrastructure for cricket coaching." But their team lost the KSCA elections.
"We don't want anyone to charge for training. That's the reason training has stopped now," he said.
Nagaraju said the BBMP had made room for most sport activities, including athletics.
He feels football players are getting overambitious. "Some of them came and said they wanted to play and keep their material here. After we let them, they say the cricket nets are in their way," he said.
He said work was on to accommodate all sports. "There will be CCTV cameras, security guards round the clock, and sports rooms to bring the stadium on par with international standards," he said.