A view of the basketball court at the complex.
“You will be nearer to heaven through football than through the study of the Gita.” - Swami Vivekananda.
Nothing more needs to be said about the importance of sports in our lives. And so, it is a boon for aspiring players and amateurs alike to have access to a facility where they can hone their skills.
In Dwarka, however, that boon is gradually turning into a bane. Poor maintenance has led to damaged cricket nets and basketball courts, dusty football grounds and a poor state of mini golf course at the DDA sports complex.
Damaged practicing nets in the cricket ground is an open invitation to disaster. A concerned father whose son practices there everyday said, “You can see big holes in the nets. There are gaps in many places. There can be a fatal injury by a cricket ball. The whole practice area should be properly covered with nets and nets should be repaired or changed periodically to avoid any mishap.”
A damaged net at the cricket ground in the sports complex.
According to Ashish Mamgain, a regular visitor at the sports complex and a resident of Sector 11, condition of the facilities inside the complex is getting worse with time and they need DDA’s attention. He said, “The maintenance is very poor and if you see the condition of the basketball court, the football ground or the tennis court, you will understand how lackadaisical the approach of the authority is. If we are paying, we are entitled get the best facilities too.”
The indoor badminton court has problems of its own. JB Mudgil, a resident of Sector 10, said, “I am a regular at the indoor badminton court. The maintenance and the facilities are poor there. The lights are very old and they take about three and half minutes to light up completely. So when there is a power cut or a fluctuation, it disturbs your game. In other places, they use LED bulbs. Such bulbs should be used here also.”
He added that there are neither fans nor a seating arrangement for players to take rest in between games. “Earlier there were table fans for players. But, now there is nothing. And in summers, it is difficult to bear the heat. Indoors should be air-conditioned like in such facilities at many places. The courts also need proper polishing and marking from time to time.”
A view of the football ground.
The basketball court and the football ground are no exception to the state of affairs at the complex. Children practicing in the football ground are faced with a health hazard. They are inhaling dust. According to players and other visitors, the ground used to be covered with grass but now there is no grass and no maintenance.
The basketball court has witnessed players getting injured due to the uneven surface. Players and coaches said that the surface of the court has cracked over time due to neglect. One of the players said, “This court was planned to have a synthetic floor. But that did not happen. Now, while practicing, players can get injured on this surface. Some players have been hurt due to the uneven surface. DDA needs to maintain the facilities at complex.”
When City Spidey spoke to Mahipal Singh, deputy director PR, DDA, he said, “Files for the repair and replacement work in the complex is being prepared. The budget for cricket nets has been sanctioned and by next week, the damaged nets will be replaced with galvanised ones. On other issues, I have asked the department concerned to do the needful.”
An open electric fuse box along the walkway in the sports complex.
