The waste lying in Guru Nanak Stadium in Ludhiana on Sunday. Gaurav Bajaj/HT
The organisers of the third Kabaddi World Cup have left the stadium ground
in a bad shape, with shards of glass, parts of railings, iron-rods, edibles and spent firecrackers littered all around. Most of the ground and the synthetic track have been damaged. It is a matter of concern as players from government schools would march and play barefooted at Guru Nanak Stadium, as they generally come from marginalised sections of the society.
Organisers of the National School Games were in the stadium in the morning on Sunday to inspect the decrepit state of the ground. Chief coordinator of the games Ravi Kumar said, "The broken glass could hurt students during the parade, as some of the state players don't come in proper sporting kit. They walk bare footed and cleaning this mess in two days will be difficult".
The makeshift arrangements that had been made to house the media and the VIP gallery have fallen onto the synthetic track. The grass in the ground has been damaged at many places, including the runway that had been cleared for bike stunts performed during the Kabaddi World Cup closing ceremony.
In the National Games, a total of 2382 members from 28 states and a union territory, including 2055 players and 327 coaches and team managers, would be participating.
"We have talked to the administration and hope that better infrastructure would be showcased before the players from other states," added Kumar.
District sports officer (DSO) Kartar Singh said, "We have deployed workers to clean the tracks before the ceremony. We will provide a clean ground." But, the ground could be repaired only after the school games as it would take time.