No Space to Grow

The lack of playing fields in our city has been a major reason for concern among Dhakaites, especially for parents and children. As crime rates are increasing day by day, more parents are becoming afraid of letting their children use public fields. "This city is not at all safe for my children. Yes, maybe I am depriving them from playing with their friends in the field, but it is better than having them kidnapped," says Maliha Chowdhury, a mother of two. 

With new television programmes and next generation gaming, technology is rapidly replacing physical sports among youngsters. "I am a huge fan of Fifa, but I never played a proper football match in real life. I don't think I am missing out on anything, as playing it on my XBOX seems a lot easier and less of a  hassle," says ten year old Adammo.

A lot of schools are now being built without proper fields. "Our annual sports matches always take place in public fields. We don't have a field which we can call our own, which is quite disappointing for sports enthusiasts like me," says Rayan Rahman, a student of Udayan Uccha Madhayamik Biddalaya. Schools such as Gateway International or Cordova have their annual sports day on some other school fields. Even the schools which have fields are not letting their students play after hours for a safety issues.

Whatever the future holds for this city, it is just a matter of time when playing in the fields will be nothing but a dream, a subject of literature, a painting in a museum for the urban life.