Satna (Madhya Pradesh): The collector has directed the Nagar Palika Parishad to maintain a stadium constructed in Unehchara city in Satna district.
Nevertheless, instead of maintaining it, the civic body has set up a wheat procurement centre in the stadium.
When the construction of the stadium ended, the civic body spent a huge sum to plant saplings around the stadium. But lack of maintenance has destroyed most of the trees. Residents of the area complained to the higher authorities about opening a wheat purchase centre at the stadium.
The administration, however, kept mum over the issue. According to reports, the government spent Rs 50cr to construct the stadium to give an opportunity to players to practice there. Official sources in Nagar Parishad said they had no information about it.
Sources further said the civic body did not take any permission from the administration for opening a wheat purchase centre in the stadium. Nor did they inform the higher authorities about it.
In the name of maintaining the stadium, the officials have spent lakhs of rupees. But the stadium is in ruins. The plasters of its boundary walls have begun to peel off.
A large number of trees dried due to lack of care. Saplings are planted every year to keep the area green. District sports officer SP Tiwari said he hardly knew how a wheat procurement centre was opened in the stadium.
He further said he had never given permission for opening a wheat procurement centre in the stadium.
Chairman of Unchehara Nagar Parishad, Niranjan Prajapati, said the civic body had maintained the stadium by spending lakhs of rupees. But it opened a wheat procurement centre in the stadium, he said.
The officials did not give any response to the complaints made to the district administration, he added.
Chief municipal officer Shailendra Singh said the stadium belonged to Unchehara Nagar Parishad but he did not know how a wheat procurement centre came up.
Singh said he would act after taking feedback about the issue.
