By Aryan Khartad AFTER remaining neglected for decades, the Tajbag Sports Complex on Umred Road is finally set for a revival, with the facility likely to be transferred from the Kamgar Kalyan Department to Nagpur Municipal Corporation (NMC) within a month. Spread across nearly 10 acres, the sports complex was built to provide modern sporting infrastructure to athletes from South and East Nagpur. Construction began after the project’s bhoomipoojan in 2004, and the complex was inaugurated in 2008. However, several proposed facilities remained incomplete due to financial constraints, leaving the project underutilised for years. The prolonged delay forced athletes from the area to travel to other parts of the city for regular training and practice, while large sections of the complex remained unused. When ‘The Hitavada’ visited the site, the complex was in a totally reckless state with vegetation taking over at the premises. Broken windows, unfinsihed walls and construction showed how ill-managed the complex was even after years of its construction. “In a recent meeting with Union Minister and Nagpur MP Nitin Gadkari, it was decided that the complex will be handed over to Nagpur Municipal Corporation,” NMC Sports Officer Dr Piyush Ambulkar told this newspaper. Explaining the reasons behind the delay, Dr Ambulkar said, “The Tajbag Sports Complex is a very old project. The main reason it remained in a shabby state was lack of funds. Initially, around Rs 15 crore was sanctioned, whereas the estimated cost for completing the project was nearly Rs 30 crore. Due to shortage of funds, construction work stalled.” He further said that Kamgar Kalyan Department was earlier responsible for the completion of project but now NMC will look after it.

 

“We have already applied for the handover and the process is expected to be completed within a month. Once the complex is officially transferred and funds are received, development work will begin immediately as per the directions of Mayor and Municipal Commissioner,” Dr Ambulkar added. The proposed sports complex was planned with facilities for indoor and outdoor sports, including athletics, football, badminton, table tennis, boxing and other disciplines. However, despite being inaugurated nearly two decades ago, much of the infrastructure remained incomplete and several facilities could never be put to regular use. The deteriorating condition of the premises has also drawn criticism in recent years, with local residents and sports enthusiasts raising concerns over poor maintenance and the underutilisation of a project built with significant public investment. Making the best whatever facilities available, Shubham Thorkar, a 29-year-old aspiring para-archer, practices at the only stable archery target present at the complex. The nearly wobbly, lone archery target shed a ton of light on the ultimate sporting mentality of Nagpurkars. “I am considerably new to archery, I have been practicing since the last 3 months at the Tajbag Sports Complex under the guidance of my coach Mohammed Zeeshan,” said the para-athlete who recently clinched a bronze medal at State championships to book his seat in the national team.

 

The whole complex of a total area of 10 acres, has only one (not so much) running facility situated at the most shadiest part of the complex, under an incomplete parking space which has never seen any automobile parked. Mohammed Zeeshan has been training able bodied and specially-abled archers at the complex since 2009. “I have gone to several ministers and officials regarding higlighting the situation here at the Tajbag Sports Complex, but to no avail,” lamented Md Zeeshan. “There are no lights, no electrical outlet, no toilets and little to no policing. Whenever there is an event going on, locals flood inside the open gated complex and make use of it as their own,” explained Zeeshan. “Locals let their cattle graze on the vegetation inside the premises. The limit was crossed when some cows ate my archery targets which are usually made of hay bales,” he said. “The major problem lies when little girls come to practice, they have to cut their training short due to the unavailability of any washroom,” he lamented. With the transfer process now underway, athletes and residents are hopeful that the long-pending sports complex will finally become a fully functional training centre for budding sportspersons from South and East Nagpur.