Residents protest closure of Gaur City Stadium; allege commercial construction

Greater Noida: Residents of Gaur City 1 staged a protest outside the Gaur City Stadium on Saturday morning, alleging that the stadium management had been denying them access to the facility due to ongoing “commercial” construction disguised as renovation work

Greater Noida: Residents of Gaur City 1 staged a protest outside the Gaur City Stadium on Saturday morning, alleging that the stadium management had been denying them access to the facility due to ongoing “commercial” construction disguised as renovation work.

Responding to the allegations, Vineeth Rajput, the stadium’s estate manager, denied that any commercial construction was underway. (Sunil Ghosh / HT)

The protest follows a notice, dated July 20 and posted outside the stadium, which stated that the facility would remain closed for one to two months for “essential repair, renovation and maintenance work”.

“Families pay every year to use the stadium for morning and evening walks and other activities. On the pretext of repairs, the builder is grabbing land and carrying out commercial construction inside the stadium,” claimed Raj C Sen, a resident of Gaur City 1.

The 18-acre stadium, established in 2015, houses a cricket ground, football ground, open gym and walking tracks. A family of four pays an annual fee of ₹1,800 to access the stadium, according to Gaur City management.

Residents alleged that the stadium was deliberately closed to prevent them from seeing the ongoing construction inside.

“We bought our apartment here specifically for this stadium. Now, they are cutting trees at the stadium and that is why they did not allow us to enter. When we were finally allowed inside, we saw construction work was underway. Soon after, they closed the stadium again,” said Gaur City 1 resident Nisha Singla.

The notice, seen by HT, stated: “This is to inform all residents availing the morning and evening walk facility at the Township Stadium that essential repair, renovation, and maintenance work is being undertaken to upgrade and improve the infrastructure of the stadium for the benefit of all users.”

It further stated that the stadium would remain closed for one to two months and assured pass holders that the validity of their annual passes would be extended by a period equivalent to the closure duration.

Responding to the allegations, Vineeth Rajput, the stadium’s estate manager, denied that any commercial construction was underway.

“On July 20, we put up a notice informing residents about the necessary maintenance and repair work, particularly of the running track, which could not be carried out over the last two to three years. There is no other construction work happening. However, following Saturday’s protest, we have decided to halt the work and will reopen the stadium for residents from Monday,” Rajput told HT.