Mani Majra pool near completion

Deepankar Sharda

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Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, october 3 

Nearly two years after a multipurpose sports complex was approved at Mani Majra, the authorities concerned are nearing the completion of the first phase of the project, which includes an indoor arena for disciplines like badminton and table tennis. It also houses an all-weather swimming pool and squash courts.

However, there is little excitement about the upcoming arena as the athletics track, football pitch and lawn tennis courts are nowhere to be seen at the proposed site, and the indoor complex offers facilities which are similar to those present at the arenas around the city. 

“It’s nothing new. Similar infrastructure is being raised in other parts of the city,” an official said while referring to the indoor sports complexes at Sector 43 and 34. 

“Here we are having an all-weather swimming pool, a multipurpose hall, indoor badminton, squash and table tennis courts…Even the design, pattern and material used here are same,” said the official.  

Approved in 2015, the project at Mani Majra is to be constructed in three phases — Phase I includes the indoor complex, while athletics track and football pitch are to be constructed in Phase II. Handball, basketball and lawn tennis courts form the third phase of the project.  

Interestingly, the administration is already struggling to find coaches to run the existing centres and it remains to been seen how it manages the indoor complex at Mani Majra. 

Athletics track

The synthetic track, which the city’s athletes have desired for long, continues to remain a dream only. 

It will at least take the authorities concerned next two years build the city’s first synthetic track, said the official. 

“There is no development on outdoor complexes. Although the land has been acquired, it’s only having wild growth,” the official said when asked about the athletics track. 

The plan purposes an eight-lane 400m synthetic track with a full (360x160) dimension football field at the centre. 

The plan also purposes to have provision for pole vault, high jump, discus throw and pits for long jump and triple jump events. It also features a handball court, a basketball court and four lawn tennis courts (all synthetic courts) near the parking area of the complex. 

So far, all these plans exist in papers and no one knows when they will see the light of the day. The approach road to the stadium, both from Mansa Devi Complex and Mani Majra, also lies in a shambles.     

One of the managers at the construction site, meanwhile, said: “The actual plan was to build the outdoor complexes first, but since indoor complexes in Chandigarh have already been constructed or remain under construction, the authorities stressed on completing the indoor arena first.”

Long wait

The plan to lay an all-weather polyurethane track was announced in 2012. It was first decided to build the track at the south campus of the Sector 42 Sports Complex. However, the project had to be scrapped after failing to get the clearance from the Environment Ministry and the Ministry of Home Affairs. 

Later in 2013, after a biopic on city-based legendary athlete Milkha Singh — Bhaag Milkha Bhaag — was released, the local authorities promised to have an exclusive athletics stadium at the Sector 46 sports complex. And it was decided to lay a 10-lane track. 

But the administration failed to acquire the land for the project from Post graduate Government College, Sector 46. 

Swimming pool lying unattended

During a visit to the complex it was found that the swimming pool at the indoor complex was lying unattended. However, an official at the site said a guard was being deployed to look after the arena. “We were checking another construction site in the complex. Otherwise, no one is allowed to enter. The pool has been filled as some officials are coming for the inspection on Wednesday,” he said. The pool is 4.5 to 6 feet deep. In 2011, two youths from Himachal Pradesh had drowned in the unguarded Sector 23 swimming pool at Sector 23 during wee hours.