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Whose ground is it anyway? Edu, Sports depts refuse to play ball

CHANDIGARH:The lack of coordination between the UT Education Department and the UT Sports Department has once again come to the fore as both denied giving permission to conduct cricket matches at the Government Model Senior Secondary School (GMSSS), Sector 26, here.

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Deepankar Sharda
Tribune News Service
Chandigarh, February 6

The lack of coordination between the UT Education Department and the UT Sports Department has once again come to the fore as both denied giving permission to conduct cricket matches at the Government Model Senior Secondary School (GMSSS), Sector 26, here.

The school is scheduled to host six matches, including a semifinal, of the All-India JP Atray Memorial Championship, starting from February 8. However, both the departments are unaware of the schedule released by the organisers on Wednesday.

On January 11, the Education Department had handed over the responsibility of the specific ground to the Sports Department. However, the latter claimed that there were some issues which are yet to be settled. This has led to confusion over who gave permission to conduct the matches at GMSSS-26.

“The requisite permission has to be granted by the Directorate of Sports, UT Sports Department,” said Rubinderjit Singh Brar, DPI (Schools).

Meanwhile, Director Sports Tejdeep Singh Saini said, “We have received the letter but there were some issues. We have submitted our queries and are waiting for their (Education Department) reply. Only after this, we will claim the responsibility of the groundconcerned.”  

The Education Department recently gave temporary charge of the ground to the counterparts.

“A long term policy for the allotment of the sport stadia/centres in the city is under process. As a stop-gap arrangement, you (UT Sports Department) are authorised to allot playgrounds in the three schools on a daily basis, at par with the rent charged for Sector 16 Cricket Stadium,” said the order issued on January 11.

The Sports Department charges Rs. 10,000 per day (9.30 am to 4pm), including water and electricity charges, with refundable security fee of Rs 20,000 for sponsored tournaments organised by sports associations, sports organisations, government organisations, universities (unrecognized), and Rs 5,000 per day for the tournaments organised by affiliated organisations of others states.

Sources in the Sports Department said that the higher authorities are not aware of any championship.

“After receiving the orders, we have submitted our queries to the office of Director, School Education. The queries are related to who will be responsible for maintenance of the concerned ground and who is authorised for booking. We are yet to receive any reply from them. The ground is still with them and they are responsible for any permission given directly or indirectly to the organisers,” said a source.

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