And now, when the work for the parks was about to start after a long struggle by the residents, the entire issue has got politicised and the work has come to a grinding halt.

Call it an apparent apathy of BDA and the BBMP towards the lower income group families living at the Kallahalli BDA Quarters. For, even after 32 years of the coming up of the project, parks in the area could not be developed.
 The place reserved for parks is now a garbage dump-yard. One can easily spot people throwing the garbage at the ‘would-be’ parks and stray animals scouring polythene bags in search of food.

The Secretary of the Residents’ Welfare Association V Munirathnam says: “We came here in 1982 with the hope that it would be one of the best place to live, as it was the heart of the city but the area now looks like a slum. At least we had never expected this scene.”

A resident of the area, Sanjeevappa criticised the BDA and the BBMP for the apathetic attitude. “You must have seen signboards saying ‘Wherever BDA Goes, Development Follows’ but where is the development? Is turning a place earmarked for park into a garbage dump-yard  development?”

When the work was about to start, a local politician came into the picture, compelling the BBMP authorities to stop the work. A week back, stones and sand were unloaded at the site meant for parks but suddenly the work was stopped on the instructions of a leader.

The reason is said to be that a local politician wanted to take credit for laying the foundation stone and get his name enshrined on the plaque.