Swimming in a pool of excuses and apathy

BANGALORE: Summer comes and summer goes, but the plight of the Bangalorean remains constant. Scores of school children and others alike have spent thousands of rupees for two months of swimming camps in private clubs this summer.All this while the Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) continues to ‘snore’ and do nothing about the swimming pools that come under their purview.Their lackadaisical attitude is not new to the city, but it has become a growing concern for the people living here.Of the eight swimming pools under it, the BBMP has done little to revive the ‘under renovation’ board on a few while the others bear the burden of excessive users and private contractors charging exorbitant fees. The Ulsoor Swimming Pool has become the ‘benchmark’ of the Palike’s carefree attitude. The pool has been under construction for over three years and before that it was in a pitiable state.Scores of contractors and engineers have commented and even announced the opening date for the pool, but reality stands testimony to their false assurances.The irony remains that the same BBMP constructed a swimming pool for the Air Force base in Yelahanka as a token of goodwill as the latter parted with its land for the BBMP’s development works.Added to this, the issue has become the Corporation’s favourite sport; ‘Blame Game’. According to the Ulsoor corporator, R Uday Kumar, the swimming pool’s condition has detoriated due to neglect on the part of the private party to whom the pool had been leased out. “I have been sending regular reports to the BBMP commissioner and have also spoken with the executive engineers.If all goes well then the Palike should be taking over the pool within a month or two. Once that happens, the first thing that I will ensure is that the condition is restored as it was before the pool was leased out,” said the corporator.On the other hand, Chairman of the Standing Committee on Education and Sports, Ramesh Babu has ruled out the construction of new swimming pools this year.“Due to the financial crunch we will not be constructing any new swimming pools this year,” he said. He also informed that no budget has been earmarked for the maintenance of the pools."We will be visiting all the eight pools in the coming weeks to check and inspect their condition.Pools that are the worst maintained will get immediate attention,” he said. Post the dusherra holidays the officials will begin their visit and repair and maintenance will be done using emergency funds. Babu also revealed that off the eight pools, the Palike has given four to five swimming pools on lease.These pools will also be visited according to the official. Another BBMP official asserted that of the eight swimming pools, six have been given on lease.As far as the swimming pool in Ulsoor and Sheshadiripuram is concerned, he said that the Palike is charting out a plan for these two pools.While the Palike officials seem a little uncertain of the situation of the pools, the locals suffer. Earlier, engineer-in-chief of the Palike, BT Ramesh, had said that swimming pools are given to private parties as it is ‘difficult’ for the Palike to maintain them. “We have a shortage of engineers as well,” he had stated and attributed the same to justify the Palike’s decision to give the pools to private parties. He said that such contracts are bagged through e-procurement and the highest bidder will be awarded the rights over the swimming pool. Officials state that only the pool in Vijaynagar is still under the Palike while the rest have been given out to private contractors.