Circus, bazaar come up at sports hub project site in Jalandhar's Burlton Park

Almost five weeks since the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government had re-launched the sports hub development project at Burlton Park here, the work is getting hampered as a huge chunk of land has been leased out on temporary basis for a show.

The show organisers have put up a circus and a London Bazaar in the park just near the site where construction work had started. While the organisers had paid Rs 11 lakh Tehbazari fee for occupying around 5,000 sq feet of the site, there are reports that they had occupied more than double the area which was earmarked for them. The organisers are expected to continue to occupy the land for another fortnight.

On June 11, Aam Aadmi Party national convener Arvind Kejriwal, Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, Rajya Sabha MP Harbhajan Singh and AAP leader Nitin Kohli had launched the sports hub project at the site after which the construction work had begun. This project is also considered to be the pet project of Bhajji and Kohli both of whom have shown a lot of interest in it.

The Municipal Corporation (MC) authorities had recently issued orders that they would not allow the cracker market inside Burlton Park during the festive season like the previous years, officials perhaps showed no such deterrence for the exhibitors.

The cracker sellers have now started raising the issue that if the circus and bazaar organisers have been granted permission, they too should be allowed to open the market at the same site. “There can be no preferential treatment given to anyone. This is the most conducive location from the point of view of available open space, parking of vehicles and easy access to buyers,” said the cracker sellers association, which has started contesting the matter.

Near the site, where the circus has been set up, the contractor has started raising a multi-purpose hall for yoga, judo, gymnastics and other sports activities. Since the site remains largely occupied, the contractor has been able to start work only in a limited area.

Senior Deputy Mayor Balbir S Dhillon said, “Ideally, this ground should be free from any temporary bazaars now as the construction work has started. I will take up the matter with Mayor Vaneet Dhir.”