COIMBATORE: The Coimbatore City Municipal Corporation (CCMC) has reportedly shelved the international standard hockey ground project that was proposed to be set up near West Arockiasamy Road in RS Puram.
The project has been put on the back burner due to various reasons despite the civic body construction boundary walls and laying the AstroTurf on the ground.
Sources from the corporation said Tamil Nadu Urban Finance and Infrastructure Development Corporation had recently enquired about the progress of the project and had even sent a set of 20 questions for the CCMC to answer.
However, the sources claimed, the corporation was not able to provide satisfactory answers.
Besides, it is to be recalled that miscreants had reportedly torched the hockey turf in January 2019.
Out of the total Rs 24 crore fund, the corporation has so far spent around Rs 5 crore for the project.
RTI activist S P Thiyagarajan said, "This shows that there is no proper planning and a lack of transparency with the city corporation. Instead of implementing projects that would yield revenue, the civic body must concentrate on the welfare of the people."
Similarly, Coimbatore District Hockey Association Secretary P Senthil Rajkumar said, "The corporation, if it wants to bring the ground to use, could spend `1 crore to develop a short pad and worn-out turf."
Now, officials are tapping all possible ways to complete the project in order to benefit the players, sources said.