5.5 Crore sports ground left unattended…is the administration listening?
The sports ground, spread over one lakh square feet, has a mini football ground, basketball court, cricket pitch, walking, jogging track and a tennis court.
Late Balasaheb Kunjir Sports ground at Pimple Saudagar which was inaugurated by the then deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar. three months back is left neglected. Issues of health and hygiene are being raised by the residents.
The sports ground, spread over one lakh square feet, has a mini football ground, basketball court, cricket pitch, walking, jogging track and a tennis court. The court is located near Rose Icon society in Pimple Saudagar area.
A total of 5.50 crore has been spent to create the sports ground.
After inauguration, many residents started using the amenities and the ground was buzzing with activity. Gradually, the charm started fading after the toilets in the ground were left unattended to.
Pune Pulse was closely covering the making of the sports ground till its inauguration.
Speaking to Pune Pulse, Saudamini Patil said, “The ambience is good. Considering our age and being unable to walk much, we prefer to come to the sports ground but for the last two months, we have noticed that the toilets are not being maintained properly. This is affecting our health and we are unable to breathe fresh air.’
A walker, on the condition of anonymity, said, “We started coming to this area for morning walk as it is safer. It has been more than two months that this sports ground was utilized by more than 300 plus people including women. The washroom and toilets are very badly maintained. The toilets stink and there is no running supply of water. There is no electricity either.”
Another resident Ravi Munde, a software techie and a Rose Icon resident who jogs on the ground regularly said, “initially there used to be a caretaker to monitor the movements of people, and open and close the ground but now it is open 24 by 7. Initially there were fixed hours like 6 am to 8 pm which was good. But over the past few weeks I have noticed that he is not there due to which the issues have cropped up. There should be a security person who needs to maintain it well.”
Speaking to Pune Pulse, former corporator Shatrughan Kate admitted the fact and said, “I am saddened to hear about the present state of the sports ground. Though the ground was developed by the civil department of PCMC, it should be handed over to the land acquisition department who will in turn hand it over to the sports department of PCMC. The contractor who was given the tender needs to uphold his responsibility to maintain it till the entire process is finished. I have taken up the issue with PCMC and we have approached the security department of PCMC to make a temporary arrangement through which the area can be safeguarded in terms of security, maintenance and hygiene.”
When contacted former corporator Nana Kate admitted the facts and said, ” It is really sad to know the state in which the sport ground is lying now. Citizens approached me in this regard. So, first I got my own people to clean it and then I approached the official concerned from PCMC to appoint two security guards as well as deploy additional staff for cleaning toilets and the premises clean and neat.”
Bhagwan Bhosale, a resident of Rose Icon said, “This is total negligence on the part of the administration. Eveb if we delay tax payment by a day, we are penalised and asked to pay extra money. This is total waste of our tax money if they cannot provide us amenities for our health and hygiene which is our right.”
Chaitraly Deshmukh-Tajane
