VIJAYAWADA: Sports enthusiasts and members of various sporting associations on Sunday expressed their ire against the authorities concerned, for laying asphalt on the cricket pitch at Indira Gandhi Municipal Corporation (IGMC) stadium, on the occasion of the maiden Independence Day celebrations by the YSRC government.
When TNIE visited the stadium complex on Sunday, heaps of asphalt were dumped on the ground. A few tractors hired by Vijayawada Municipal Corporation and heavy machinery like road rollers were seen levelling the surface which was damaged in the aftermath of heavy rains, which lashed the city for the past few days. When questioned about why asphalt was being laid on the cricket pitch, the workers said that the officials concerned instructed them to prevent water stagnation on the ground by recarpeting the damaged surface with asphalt.
‘’Since 2014, IGMC stadium has become a convenient place for the government to organise its programmes due to space constraints in the city. After this incident, the stadium has turned out to be an unsafe training ground for athletes. Earlier, the officials during TDP government also utilised the ground for hosting various events, but they never used asphalt to recarpet the cricket pitch,” said KP Rao, Secretary, Krishna District Olympic Association (KDOA).