Row brews over public swimming pool in Mangaluru
Mangaluru: The management of the Emmekere public swimming pool in Mangaluru has come under scrutiny following allegations by members of a local swimming club regarding operational priorities and access. In response, Naveen, the director of the pool, addressed the media to clarify the situation and defend the facility's recent initiatives.
According to Naveen, the pool's operations have been managed through an open tender since December 1, 2024. Under this agreement, a security de-posit of Rs 50 lakh was submitted and a monthly fee of Rs 2.61 lakh is be-ing paid to the City corporation. The pool is currently open to the general public, children, and athletes, and offers structured swimming programmes ranging from beginner to high-performance levels, under the guidance of cer-tified National Institute of Sports (NIS) coaches.
Out of the ten available swimming lanes, seven have been allocated for ath-letes, one for lap swimmers, and two for the general public. Naveen stated that further prioritisation for athletes would be made based on demand.
In response to criticisms from a section of the swimming community, par-ticularly Mangala Swimming Club, Naveen emphasised his long-standing respect for the Dakshina Kannada Swimming Association and its office-bearers. However, he alleged that a few individuals from the Mangala Club were misusing the association's name to promote personal agendas and in-fluence political representatives and officials for preferential treatment.
He recounted that when the Mangaluru City Corporation's swimming pool was temporarily closed, both Jai Hind and Mangala clubs were granted training access at Emmekere. While Jai Hind Club returned to the corpora-tion facility upon its reopening, Mangala Swimming Club requested contin-ued access and was allowed evening slots from 6:30 pm to 8:00 pm. Despite this, Naveen alleged, the club continued training sessions beyond the permit-ted time—sometimes past 9:00 pm—without objection from the manage-ment.
To enhance training standards, a Vishwamitri Award-winning NIS-certified coach was appointed. However, disagreements arose when Mangala Swim-ming Club declined schedule adjustments proposed due to technical re-quirements and instead opted to shift back to the corporation pool.
Naveen also responded to accusations that public access to the main pool hampers athlete training. He asserted that the facility is managed inclusively to serve both athletes and citizens. While free entry has been granted to mer-itorious national- and international-level swimmers at specific times, tech-nical and financial constraints do not allow similar exemptions for personal coaches.
He concluded by expressing concern that efforts to modernise and broaden the pool's offerings are being misrepresented to the public, and stressed the need to safeguard the facility's dual mission: promoting competitive excel-lence and public fitness.
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