Summer call: Keep Bengaluru parks open all day, say citizens

Bengaluru: As summer temperatures rise, a debate is heating up across Bengaluru, with a citizens' campaign demanding that public parks remain open through the hottest hours of the day.Residents and activists are auditing parks across neighbourhoods, documenting closure timings and locked gates. Their concern is straightforward: green spaces are essential public infrastructure and should be accessible when heat is at its peak.
The push is the strongest in south Bengaluru, where the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) had earlier allowed parks to stay open from 5am to 10pm. That order was later rolled back, and several parks now shut between 11am and 4pm, and again at 8pm — limiting access during the harshest part of the day.For professionals, students, gig workers and street vendors, afternoons in parks offer rare respite from the heat. Campaigners argue that in a warming city, shaded public spaces are not a luxury but a necessity — and should remain open when they are needed most.The initiative demanding full-day access to parks is being led by the Indian Ploggers Army in collaboration with Heat Watch India. Residents have been urged to send photographs and details of parks that remain closed during the afternoon. Nagaraj, popularly known as ‘Plog Raja', is spearheading the campaign. "The data will be collated over one month, after which the team plans to approach the respective city corporation commissioners with an appeal to extend the timings," he said."For the delivery partners and labourers building our city, a park is often the only place to find shade and a meal. For the office-goer with a lunchbox, it's a necessary alternative to restaurants that do not allow outside food," he added, and called upon local authorities to prioritise dignity and community care over rigid timings.Founder of HeatWatch Foundation, Apekshita Varshney, termed the reinstating of extended park timings a simple and vital public health measure. "People from every walk of life use parks, but the impact falls hardest on those without private cooling, including gig and platform workers, waste workers, domestic workers, and more, who depend on parks for a moment of rest and some shade," she said.BSCC joint commissioner Naveen Kumar Raju said the corporation staff require 3 to 4 hours for the maintenance of parks. He said he would discuss extending the timings with the commissioner in view of summer.Student and JP Nagar resident Ridhi Jayaprakash, a regular at parks in JP Nagar and Jayanagar, said: "Recently, when I was spending all day at the library, the park was the only place I could go to eat my lunch and clear my head. I still remember being a three-year-old, coming home from kindergarten, and sitting with my grandmother while she fed me tomato rice under the trees. These are not just patches of grass; they are a huge part of our lives. With the city getting this hot, closing them early feels like taking away the only cool, quiet spot we have left." Jayanagar 4th Block resident Siddharth Munot, who visits Akkamadevi Park on Rashtreeya Vidyalaya Road, said: "Parks are public property and should be open round the clock, especially during summer. Most other states, like Rajasthan and Maharashtra, keep parks open the whole day. I'm unsure why Karnataka has a different policy."