Karnataka - Gulbarga   

Indoor stadium gets a lifeline

Damaged: Stagnant water inside the multipurpose indoor stadium, located on the main campus of Gulbarga University.

GULBARGA: There appears to be hope for sports lovers in the district with Gulbarga University finally deciding to take up repairs of the multipurpose indoor stadium located on the main campus of the university. The stadium, constructed to meet international standards, at a cost of over Rs. 1.5 crore, is not being used because of a leaking roof.

The stadium was the dream project of the then Vice-Chancellor, N. Rudraiah, who was a health buff and a sportsperson. Mr. Rudraiah had sanctioned funds for the construction of the stadium so that State-and national-level volleyball, badminton, basketball and table tennis tournaments could be held.

The project, taken up in 1993, was completed in the early part of this decade. However, the teakwood flooring could not be installed as planned because of the leaking roof. The teakwood purchased for the flooring is rotting in the storeroom of the stadium.

Since water has stagnated inside the stadium, it has made it impossible for Physical Education Department officials to conduct even local tournaments. The stadium has been used for conducting the annual convocation of the university as well for the counting of votes during elections. Except for sports events, everything else has been conducted in the stadium. No tournament has been held in the stadium since its inception.

The stagnant water inside the stadium has resulted in damage to the flooring. The water has started seeping into the walls. In the basement, rooms originally meant to be changing rooms were used as classrooms for B.P.Ed students. Registrar of the university Pratap Singh Tiwari, who is also the dean of the department, told The Hindu that the university had made a provision of Rs. 25 lakh in the annual budget this year for replacing the leaking roof and also installing synthetic flooring in the stadium. Mr. Tiwari said that they wanted to make the stadium a centre of excellence in sports by providing specialised training in different sports and organising State and national-level tournaments. The tenders for taking up the repairs would be called for this month and the work would start within two months, he added.

The university and the contractor who constructed the stadium were locked in a legal battl. Only recently, the case was disposed of in favour of the university in the Supreme Court.

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