Indian Express 16.11.2009
Adventure sports sink in PCMC boat club
A month-and-a-half after monsoon ended, the Boat Club of the Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Corporation at Thergaon still has few takers. While officials are blaming it on inclement weather, activists and sports enthusiasts blame civic apathy that has allowing sports infrastructure to remain idle.
The Boat Club and the adjoining gardens where various equipment for children are available were set up by the PCMC more than nine years ago. The civic administration invested around Rs 5 crore on the infrastructure. To promote adventure sports in the town, the administration decided to open the Boat Club area at the Thergaon to public for rowing, canoeing and kayaking by handing it over to a private party.
The Sunny Sports Centre was given the task of training students and enthusiasts in the three activities. The centre went a step forward and set up the Water Sport Academy. “We set up the academy because the state government had made it mandatory when it handed over the land in the area to the PCMC,” said Sunny Sabestian, who started the centre. The Boat Club is the only one of its kind run by any civic body or cantonment in Pune.
Sabestian said that he was no more associated with the PCMC sports activity and has no clue whether the activities are taking place or not. “Our centre used to train students in rowing, canoeing and kayaking. At least, 50 students have played national championships all because of the academy’s activities. The Boat Club area has been of immense help,” said Sabestian.
Pravin Rayate, an activist from Kalewadi, said a lot of people, who visit the Boat Club site, spent time in the garden, but there is hardly any activity as far as the Boat Club is concerned. “Earlier, it was common to find students practising kayaking or rowing,” he said.
Employees of PCMC’s garden said the Boat Club remains closed during monsoon but soon picks momentum.
PCMC’s sports in-charge Sahebrao Gaikwad said he wasn’t aware whether sports activities are going on or have stopped. “But we are going to appoint a new private party to run the show in Thergaon. We will ensure that rowing, kayaing and canoeing activities also start,” he said.
PCMC sports committee member Babu Nair said like the Boat Club, there are also other sports infrastructure that have remained unutilised or underutilised. “The issue has been discussed in sports committee meetings. The committee has come to the conclusion that all the ills affecting sports activities in the PCMC jurisdiction is because of the absence of a sports policy. The PCMC never had such a policy and we have already taken up the issue with the municipal commissioner,” Nair said.
