Bengaluru playgrounds: Public vs private

Playgrounds are meant for everyone, but in a city hungry for real estate, they are usurped by various entities. As a result, open spaces are scarcer than ever before.

The upgraded Chandrashekhar Azad Ground in the upper part of Malleswaram in Bengaluru was inaugurated in 2023. It boasted of meeting international standards, featuring floodlights, synthetic track fields designed to coach runners and athletes, and an indoor volleyball and badminton stadium.

Cut to 2025. While the synthetic running track is satisfactory, the synthetic flooring in the central area of the ground has developed dark patches, and the flooring has come loose in areas where waterlogging occurred. A lack of proper levelling and water drainage in all parts of the ground has resulted in poor quality, while maintenance is also lacking. Old air-conditioner ducts and equipment from a nearby public building are dumped on one part of the ground.

While local kids and people are allowed inside the ground, they have to go to the main Malleswaram ground to play cricket.

The biggest catch is that the upgrade also came with restrictions for the public. One side of the ground that abuts the main road is now blocked with a 6.5-foot-tall wall and barbed wire.

Why such high security for a public ground? “Vandals may steal the mesh, poles, and other infrastructure installed in the ground, that’s why,” replied an official who spoke to DH. The maintenance contract is not in place as of now, said sources, and attributed the status of the ground to the lack of maintenance.

So now, local people have to take a detour to get to the ground as it has only one entry. Children and youth from Mohammadan Block and Valluvapuram slum area, who used to play there earlier, cannot easily enter the ground. Luckily for them, they have other grounds and options to play on nearby. However, this is not the case with playgrounds in many other areas, especially those in densely populated or newly developed areas.

Meanwhile, most of the BBMP-managed playgrounds lack proper drainage systems and often become swimming pools during rain. “Water seeping into the ground is good for the environment and groundwater recharge, but there should be a system to maintain the ground as a ground,” says Kavitha B, a private school teacher from Nandini Layout.

‘Vested interests at work’

Sneha Nandihal, a resident of Indiranagar, says political pressure is challenging to overcome. This is true of the Indiranagar ground. In 2019, the State Human Rights Commission of Karnataka took note of a media report on a similar attempt to build a badminton court on the same ground and asked the BBMP to respond. The BBMP, in its response, stated that no such project was planned, and the case was subsequently dropped. However, the case is now back in the limelight, as the project has been revived, and residents are protesting once again.

A citizen from Srirampuram, who preferred anonymity, said that politicians with vested interests, such as those running various sports clubs and coaching centres, use their power to “upgrade” playgrounds and then gradually introduce paid coaching classes and other services. Sometimes, grounds are given to private and public functions and exhibitions as well. “How serious are these coachings? What percentage of kids coached like this go to the next level?” he asked.

Rekha Chari, President of the Malleswaram Swabhimana Initiative Forum, recalls the days when all the playgrounds in Malleswaram were open to everyone.

A case still unsettled

Many public playgrounds in Bengaluru have been slowly and steadily privatised, where, in some cases, the state itself leases out the land to various parties that then use it for purposes other than the intended one. Citizens cite the case of the Indian Gymkhana Club as an example.

The Indian Gymkhana Club website showcases luxury accommodations, guest rooms, spas and salons, a lawn for events, various recreational programmes, party halls, dining areas, and food and drinks. It also features a sports complex with coaching and facilities for playing tennis, Billiards, badminton, a gym, swimming pool, yoga, and Karate, all accessible to club members at a discount. Non-members, however, must pay more.

Bharathinagar ex-MLA N Rajanna had filed a writ petition seeking the reversal of the land for public use in February 2025. He asked the court to direct the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) to take back the land measuring 3 acres and 13 guntas out of 4 acres and 21 guntas leased to the Indian Gymkhana Club in 1932. The state Department of Housing and Urban Development had issued an order to this effect in 2022.

He contended that it was depicted as a park and playground in the Comprehensive Development Plan and had been used by youths and the local public for sports and other activities for many years. In his petition, he said that the ground was known as ‘Cricket Ground of Cox Town’ where well-known national-level cricket players practised once, and school children also use the ground. He also argued in the petition that the Indian Gymkhana Club was not interested in promoting sports and games.

However, the court dismissed this petition, citing the petitioner’s failure to disclose a previous case involving the same ground that had been filed by the Indian Gymkhana Club, in which he was a respondent. The issue remains unsettled, with a case still pending in court, due to the fact that the government renewed the lease of the said land in 2010 for 35 years, at Rs 60,000 per acre, to be revised every three years.

Meanwhile, locals complain about the lack of open spaces and playgrounds for the poor and the middle class, while the rich pay a fee to the club and use their utilities and services.

In another case, the Karnataka High Court stayed a case in May 2012, in which the BBMP sought to build a basketball and tennis court at a cost of Rs 80 lakh within a public park in Vyalikaval. The court asked the BBMP to stop the project and plant trees in the park.

Why private parties?

Clifton Rosario, a Bengaluru-based lawyer, says: “Public spaces available for children and youth to play, especially those from the working class, are shrinking across the entire city. Open grounds were converted into parks, and restrictions were placed on the timings during which they would be open, as well as on what activities could be done in the parks and what could not.

“The BBMP must ensure that such grounds are public and not privatised. Many grounds have been leased out to schools and colleges in the city. They should also be made accessible to the public, especially children from the local area,” adds Clifton.

He rues the fact that even among the grounds that remain, many are being privatised, and many cricket camps take place in such grounds, organised by private parties. He mentions the R T Nagar ground as an example, where a private cricket camp runs.

“If a private party runs a cricket camp, they can make their own arrangements. Why should a public place be given to them so that they can make money? This should not be allowed,” he argues.