Mohali stadium off limits for players

Deepankar Sharda

Mohali, May 31

Players will have to skip practice sessions at the Sector 78 Sports Complex here as the office of Deputy Commissioner has ordered its closure from May 29 to June 5 owing to the Lok Sabha elections.

As per an order issued by the District Sports Officer (DSO), the stadium will remain out of bound for players till June 5.

The stadium has been converted into a centre for dispatching polling parties to their respective stations. The arena has been turned into a fortress and unauthorised persons are not allowed to enter it. Having no other options, the players have to skip their practice sessions for a week. The stadium houses indoor basketball courts, fencing area, multipurpose hall and a football ground.

No practice session till June 5

Today, hundreds of chairs were placed on the basketball court for polling teams. It will surely damage the facility. Besides, it will disturb our practice sessions for a week. —A player

There are a total of seven stadiums in Mohali. These are located in Phase 5, 7, 9 and 11 and Sectors 69, 71 and 78. The facilities at Phase 9 and Sector 78 are looked after by the district Sports Department, while the others operate under government-public partnership.

In the past, the stadium hosted many national events as well as block-level competitions of the ‘Khedan Watan Punjab Diyan’.

“Earlier this year, the Punjab Chief Minister had ordered that no Republic Day celebrations will be held in stadiums having athletics track. Today, hundreds of chairs were placed on the basketball court for polling teams. It will surely damage the facility. Besides, it will disturb the players’ practice sessions for a week,” said a player, seeking anonymity.