The promise of a playground

We welcome Dhaka South City Corporation (DSCC) Mayor Sheikh Fazle Noor Taposh's recent announcement that he would build a playground in every ward. Mayor Taposh has, no doubt, touched a very sensitive chord, as the residents of DSCC have been demanding open space for their children for a long time now. The need for children to go out in the sun and play with their peers was felt by parents even more intensely during the Covid-induced lockdowns. Doctors suggested sunlight and exercise for the young and old alike, but there are hardly any open spaces for either to walk or to play in within the city. We appreciate that the DSCC mayor has put due emphasis on this significant aspect, and hope he is committed to going ahead with his plan.

With rapid, and often unplanned, urbanisation sprawling across our cities, open spaces where children could play freely have slowly been consumed by concrete structures or they have just been encroached by local influentials. While children do enjoy staying indoors and playing on digital devices instead, this is far from a healthy practice to encourage. Affluent neighbourhoods of the capital, barred off from the rest of it and much better organised, often have multiple playgrounds and parks dedicated to people of all ages. But this needs to be translated across Dhaka city, and eventually across all major cities in Bangladesh. Children need to be physically active and engage in play with their peers from different socio-economic backgrounds if they are to develop properly throughout the crucial few years of childhood.

Of course, we know of similar projects being delayed beyond comprehension. One such project is the five-acre land in the western corner of the National Parliament building, adjacent to the Mirpur Road, which, as this daily reported in December 2021, was supposed to be turned into a playground for children with special needs in 2011 as per the prime minister's announcement, but is still sitting idle. Thus, we urge the mayor to stick to his words and build a playing field in every ward, setting up playgrounds by recovering the corporation's land in Wards 42, 26 and 13, which have been under illegal occupation for years.

Powerful quarters who encroach on land meant for playgrounds must also be identified and held accountable by the authorities. These connected people often thwart every attempt of city corporation officials to recover the lands from their grip. The city corporation must not bow to such attempts anymore. Our children deserve to play freely under open skies—for their health and their future.