At last, six-year wait for AstroTurf ends

Deepankar Sharda

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, August 31

The six-year-long wait for AstroTurf is over. The UT Sports Department received the much-awaited AstroTurf for the hockey stadium of the Sports Complex, Sector 42, today.

According to sources the new AstroTurf costs around Rs 4.2 crore, including installation charges. A mini-field will be also laid at the hockey stadium, Sector 18. The life of the turf is around five to six years.

The AstroTurf that was expected to be replaced in 2008-09, took almost six years to arrive in Chandigarh. The delay, thanks to the lethargic approach of the authorities, had left the local players in the lurch. Even after the expiry of the old turf, the UT Sports Department continued to use the hockey stadium.

Earlier in March, the department finally ripped of the tattered AstroTurf to replace it with a new one. “We have received the new turf and the process to lay it will commence tomorrow. The contractor is expected to take 10 days to fix it. Thereafter, we are planning to host a friendly match for the inauguration of the field. Though the turf arrived late, we are happy to receive it during the current session,” said KS Bharti, Joint Director, Sports.

In absence of an Astroturf field, Chandigarh Hockey Academy was using different stadiums for regular practice sessions while the Hockey Chandigarh had held three local championships on different grounds in the recent times. The department has also decided to lay a six-a-side AstroTurf field at the hockey stadium of Sector 18.

“We can now follow our scheduled practice sessions. Earlier, we were visiting the air force grounds and a Mohali-based private academy for practice sessions. We will now be able to prepare well for upcoming nationals,” said Paramjeet Singh, a local hockey player.

The local coaches also welcomed the replacement of the old AstroTurf. Many domestic hockey tournaments besides India-Pakistan, India-Spain and India-Malaysia (U-19) test series matches have been held at the hockey stadium of the Sport Complex. With the introduction of the new AstroTurf, the authorities are expected to bid for the Hockey India League (HIL) matches.