By Paritosh Pramanik
NAGPUR Municipal Corporation (NMC) administration is quick on announcing developmental schemes but is too slow in implementing them.
The latest is the announcement of development of sports fields around the city.
In April 2021, the Sports Committee of NMC announced to develop at least one ground in each of six legislative constituencies of Nagpur.
The grounds were selected and NMC earned much publicity in the media with the then sports committee chairman Pramod Tabhane along with other officials clicking photographs inspecting the grounds.
It was decided to construct compound walls to protect the ground from anti-socials, toilets, water facilities at all the selected grounds.
Nagpurians, especially the sportspersons, were forced to believe that the grounds would be developed in the best possible way with all basic amenities.
But it has been more than 14 months since then, not a single ground has been developed.
NMC had selected six grounds in six legislative constituencies.
In North Nagpur, Guru Govindsingh Stadium, in West Nagpur, Marartoli ground; in Central Nagpur: Adarsh Vinkar Colony ground; in South Nagpur, Chowkoni Sports Ground and Yuva Sanskriti Krida Mandal; in South West Nagpur, Central Excise Layout Ground and in East Nagpur, Vidarbha Housing Board Colony Ground were selected to be developed with all basic amenities.
But till date officials hardly visited any of the six grounds after their so-called inspection. It was also decided that those grounds in NITs possession would be transferred to NMC to speed up the development work. But that did not happen.
When contacted, Tabhane said that the files for the tendering process are ready but are being stalled with the NMC Commissioner Radhakrishnan B’s office.
“We have submitted all the documents for the tendering process in February this year. But things are not moving from the NMC Commissioner’s office,” alleged Tabhane. “A few files are with NMC Sports Officer Piyush Ambulkar,” he said. “The NMC has already passed a budget in which 5 per cent of the total budget is allocated for sports. It would require hardly Rs 1.25 crore to develop these grounds,” Tabhane told ‘The Hitavada’.
However, as per Radhakrishnan B, grounds are to be developed by Nagpur Improvement Trust and gardens by NMC. The NMC has no power to develop the grounds, he said.
“I have not received any such proposal or files. As far as developing grounds are concerned it is NIT’s job. We (NMC) are entrusted to develop gardens of the city. I would like to ask Tabhane as to who gave him the permission to inspect and announce development grounds. No such order was issued from our department,” clarified Radhakrishnan B.
“If I receive any such proposal to develop grounds of the city, I would transfer it to NIT,” he clarified.
Whatever be the rules, but it is the sportspersons of the city who are suffering.
Union Minister Nitin Gadkari has proclaimed that he is developing over 300 grounds of the city, but the fact is that six grounds selected by the city fathers remain orphaned. It seems that the plans are not realistic and they will never be more than a pipe dream.
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