Budding players suffer as new basketball court misses commissioning deadline

The commissioning of the world class Basketball Court, being constructed at Guru Nanak Stadium here, under the Smart City Mission, has been delayed once again. With the construction work far from complete, the Court will take at least two more months before the budding players can start using it for their training.

It is learnt that instead of the latest deadline of March 31, set for the completion of the project, the court will be ready only by the end of April. This is the fourth time that the completion of the project has been pushed further. Because of the delay in completing the project, the players in the city have to make do with the old, and mostly overcrowded basketball court. This court cannot accommodate the many players who have taken to the sport, thus hitting their regular practice.

The construction of the new court is part of the Ludhiana Smart City Mission. The initial estimated cost for its construction was Rs 11.36 crore. The work order for project was given in January 2023 and it was originally supposed to be commissioned for players by July 2023. However, the deadline was first extended to June 2024, then December 2024, January 2025 and now to March 31.

Officials attribute the delay to changes in the original plan, including the addition of a gallery, which was not initially a part of the project. The cost of Maplewood flooring also increased, leading to the decision to install Canadian Maplewood. This required additional permissions, causing further delays. Notably, officials were cautious about using Maplewood due to a previous incident where a badminton court floor made of Maplewood was infested with termites. Canadian Maplewood, although more expensive, is of better quality.

The Union Minister of State for Railways Ravneet Singh Bittu has also criticised the civic body for delaying the construction of the basketball court. The project was initially conceptualised during his tenure as Member of Parliament from Ludhiana. Bittu has emphasised many times that the development and upgradation of sports infrastructure, including the basketball court, were proposed during his previous tenure as MP. He has claimed to have repeatedly urged officials to expedite the work.

Teja Singh Dhaliwal, General Secretary of the Punjab Basketball Association and Former Vice-President of the Basketball Federation of India, told The Tribune here on Thursday that the concerned officials had told him that basketball court would be completed by March 31 and players can start practice on this world-class court and once it’s completed, we can proudly say that it would be the country’s one of the best quality basketball court.

“More than 150 budding players have been coming to the stadium for playing basketball. Since only one old court is functional, not all the players are getting chance for practice everyday and many players have to sit outside or skip practice. The delay is also making us to postpone the basketball tournament for over one year,” added Dhaliwal.

“Though I am told that court would be ready by March 31 but going by the pending construction, it don’t think court would be ready by this deadline. It may be completed in the last week of April only,” asserted Dhaliwal.