Poor maintenance of Kothagudem’s Pragathi Maidan irks morning walkers, players

Lack of proper monitoring by the authorities in maintaining the ground has been causing severe inconvenience to the sports enthusiasts as well as morning walkers. The entire ground has been converted into a storage yard for the contractors.

Kothagudem: The residents of Kothagudem raising objections over misuse of Pragathi Maidan, a sports ground in the heart of the town, by contractors engaged in development works.

Lack of proper monitoring by the authorities in maintaining the ground has been causing severe inconvenience to the sports enthusiasts as well as morning walkers. The entire ground has been converted into a storage yard for the contractors.

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The walking track which is supposed to be filled up with soft soil for the walkers to walk comfortably is filled with soil full of stones defeating the very purpose of the walking track.

Pragathi Maidan at Barley pit area is being used to celebrate national and state festivals like Republic Day, Independence Day, Telangana State formation Day besides sports events. Some time back a helipad was built with cement on the ground causing inconvenience to players.

Speaking to Telangana Today a local B Srinivas complained that large sized stones on the walking track have turned a menace for the morning walkers. Every day men, women as well as children come for a morning walk and they are forced to walk on rubble suffering injuries often, he noted.

He said that several complaints to the municipal officials have yielded no result. The local youths use the ground to organise cricket events. As the ground is covered with gravel it has become extremely dangerous for the players to play on the ground.

Residents of Rama Talkies area Sd. Ahmed said that the contractor engaged in development works at the ground has locked one of the gates of the ground to protect the construction material he dumped on the ground. As a result the ground remained inaccessible for the locals, they lamented.

Cement benches set up for the walkers and players have been damaged by boozers who made the ground their adda during night hours. Equipment at an open gym in Pragathi Maidan is in a very sad state as the equipment is damaged. The municipal officials have to look into the issue and take immediate measures to maintain the ground in a proper manner, they demanded.