<p>But many of the Bal Bhavans in Karnataka have either been misused or not used at all. <br />In Mangalore, Bal Bhavan premises was rented out for a night party, while in Bidar the area belonging to Bal Bhavan had been encroached upon by other government departments. <br /><br />Amruth Kumar, Chairman of Bal Bhavan Society, the governing body of all 27 Bal Bhavans in the State, has listed these irregularities in his recent report to the Chief Minister.<br />Bal Bhavans are institutions spread all over the country with the sole objective of providing a proper platform for children to hone their creative skills. These centres have been affiliated to National Bal Bhavan in Delhi. <br /><br />The State government gives annual grant of Rs 3.5 crore for their activities and maintenance. They are meant for conducting cultural activities and educative programmes for children. Kumar visited Bal Bhavans in district and taluk centres and was shocked at the state of affairs in many.<br /><br /></p>.<p>Party place in M’lore<br /><br />On a surprise visit to Bal Bhavan in Mangalore, he found that the premises was rented out for a late night party. The people partying were in an inebriated state.<br /><br />The Chairman, in his report to the Chief Minister, has demanded disciplinary action against the officers concerned for misuse of the Bal Bhavan. <br /><br />At district centres, Zilla Panchayat chief executive officer and deputy director of Women and Child Development are president and secretary of Bal Bhavans. Kumar said in Bidar the Bal Bhavan possesses two acres and two guntas of land of which a major portion had been encroached upon by the Department of Youth Services and Sports to construct a swimming pool and the Fisheries department had constructed an aquarium. <br /><br />“I wonder what the chairman and secretary of Bal Bhavan were doing while other departments were encroaching upon their land,” he remarked.<br /><br />Bal Bhavan in Tumkur has a different story. It possess 14 guntas of land on M G Road in the heart of the city. A major portion of the land had been occupied by 32 shops. The Bhavan gets a monthly rent of Rs 75,290 from the shops. But for many years, there has been no activities for children. “The basic objective of the Bal Bhavan is lost in Tumkur,” Kumar added.<br /><br />No show in Mandya<br /><br />The government spent Rs 35 lakh to construct an auditorium in Bal Bhavan on Ashok Road in Mandya last year.<br /><br />The Chairman alleged that it was a waste of money as no activity had been conducted in the building since it was built. Moreover, he said, the building had no proper acoustics and not suitable for theatre activities. <br /><br />Similarly, the Bhavans in Mudigere, Belgaum, Gulbarga had conducted no activities <br />for children. <br /><br />He further said following his visit, “Things had begun moving in right direction”.<br />In Mangalore, the Bhavan premises was rented out for a night party because the district administration had handed over maintenance of the Bhavan to a private body, despite the Society’s stand against doing so. Similarly, efforts were on to take back the land encroached upon in Bidar. <br /><br />Joy rides to make a comeback <br /><br />Two years after the death of a woman at the amusement park in Jawahar Bal Bhavan inside Cubbon Park, the Bhavan has decided to re-introduce amusement rides in the park.<br /><br />Bal Bhavan Society, the governing body of the Bal Bhavan, had banned the fun rides in its premises after the death of the woman in June 2008. Then, there were 12 amusement rides run by private parties. Following the tragic accident, the tenders were cancelled.<br />Now, the society has proposed to lift the ban by installing three amusement rides –– peacock train, merry-go-round and dashing cars. <br /><br />The Women and Child Development department has constituted a technical committee, under the chairmanship of secretary of the department, to make recommendations on re-installing amusement facilities. <br /><br />The committee has recommended that no new amusement equipment should be installed in the campus without taking opinion of an expert committee.<br /><br />Bal Bhavan Society Chairman Amruth Kumar said the society had sent a proposal to the department to install three amusement rides in the park. After the department gives its approval tenders would be invited.<br /><br /></p>
<p>But many of the Bal Bhavans in Karnataka have either been misused or not used at all. <br />In Mangalore, Bal Bhavan premises was rented out for a night party, while in Bidar the area belonging to Bal Bhavan had been encroached upon by other government departments. <br /><br />Amruth Kumar, Chairman of Bal Bhavan Society, the governing body of all 27 Bal Bhavans in the State, has listed these irregularities in his recent report to the Chief Minister.<br />Bal Bhavans are institutions spread all over the country with the sole objective of providing a proper platform for children to hone their creative skills. These centres have been affiliated to National Bal Bhavan in Delhi. <br /><br />The State government gives annual grant of Rs 3.5 crore for their activities and maintenance. They are meant for conducting cultural activities and educative programmes for children. Kumar visited Bal Bhavans in district and taluk centres and was shocked at the state of affairs in many.<br /><br /></p>.<p>Party place in M’lore<br /><br />On a surprise visit to Bal Bhavan in Mangalore, he found that the premises was rented out for a late night party. The people partying were in an inebriated state.<br /><br />The Chairman, in his report to the Chief Minister, has demanded disciplinary action against the officers concerned for misuse of the Bal Bhavan. <br /><br />At district centres, Zilla Panchayat chief executive officer and deputy director of Women and Child Development are president and secretary of Bal Bhavans. Kumar said in Bidar the Bal Bhavan possesses two acres and two guntas of land of which a major portion had been encroached upon by the Department of Youth Services and Sports to construct a swimming pool and the Fisheries department had constructed an aquarium. <br /><br />“I wonder what the chairman and secretary of Bal Bhavan were doing while other departments were encroaching upon their land,” he remarked.<br /><br />Bal Bhavan in Tumkur has a different story. It possess 14 guntas of land on M G Road in the heart of the city. A major portion of the land had been occupied by 32 shops. The Bhavan gets a monthly rent of Rs 75,290 from the shops. But for many years, there has been no activities for children. “The basic objective of the Bal Bhavan is lost in Tumkur,” Kumar added.<br /><br />No show in Mandya<br /><br />The government spent Rs 35 lakh to construct an auditorium in Bal Bhavan on Ashok Road in Mandya last year.<br /><br />The Chairman alleged that it was a waste of money as no activity had been conducted in the building since it was built. Moreover, he said, the building had no proper acoustics and not suitable for theatre activities. <br /><br />Similarly, the Bhavans in Mudigere, Belgaum, Gulbarga had conducted no activities <br />for children. <br /><br />He further said following his visit, “Things had begun moving in right direction”.<br />In Mangalore, the Bhavan premises was rented out for a night party because the district administration had handed over maintenance of the Bhavan to a private body, despite the Society’s stand against doing so. Similarly, efforts were on to take back the land encroached upon in Bidar. <br /><br />Joy rides to make a comeback <br /><br />Two years after the death of a woman at the amusement park in Jawahar Bal Bhavan inside Cubbon Park, the Bhavan has decided to re-introduce amusement rides in the park.<br /><br />Bal Bhavan Society, the governing body of the Bal Bhavan, had banned the fun rides in its premises after the death of the woman in June 2008. Then, there were 12 amusement rides run by private parties. Following the tragic accident, the tenders were cancelled.<br />Now, the society has proposed to lift the ban by installing three amusement rides –– peacock train, merry-go-round and dashing cars. <br /><br />The Women and Child Development department has constituted a technical committee, under the chairmanship of secretary of the department, to make recommendations on re-installing amusement facilities. <br /><br />The committee has recommended that no new amusement equipment should be installed in the campus without taking opinion of an expert committee.<br /><br />Bal Bhavan Society Chairman Amruth Kumar said the society had sent a proposal to the department to install three amusement rides in the park. After the department gives its approval tenders would be invited.<br /><br /></p>
