Shruti Suman
Today’s clash between India and Australia at Raipur’s Shaheed Veer Narayan Singh Stadium is marred by an unexpected hurdle – a lack of electricity in parts of the stadium. This hindrance threatens to disrupt the enjoyment of spectators in the fourth T20 International match. The root cause of this significant glitch is the non-payment of bills since 2009, resulting in a total outstanding amount of 3.16 crores. Consequently, the electricity connection at the stadium was severed five years ago. While a temporary connection was later installed upon the request of the Chhattisgarh State Cricket Association, it only covers the spectators’ gallery and boxes. As a result, the floodlights during today’s match will need to be powered by a generator. The Secretary of the Cricket Association has already applied to increase the capacity of the temporary connection, as confirmed by Raipur Rural Circle in-charge Ashok Khandelwal.
The current capacity of the temporary connection stands at 200 KV, and an approved application seeks to upgrade it to 1,000 KV. However, the upgrade work has not commenced yet.
The stadium’s power woes date back to 2018 when athletes participating in a half-marathon raised a protest upon realizing there was no electricity supply. The revelation led to the acknowledgment that the electricity bill had remained unpaid since 2009, accumulating to Rs 3.16 crore.
After the stadium’s construction, maintenance responsibility was transferred to the Public Works Department (PWD), with the Sports Department expected to cover remaining expenses. The two departments have engaged in a blame game regarding the unpaid power bill.
Despite several notices from the electricity company, neither the PWD nor the Sports Department has made any payments.
Since the power connection was severed in 2018, three international cricket matches have been held at the stadium. According to Chhattisgarh State Cricket Sangh media coordinator Tarunesh Singh Parihar, there are concerns among authorities about hosting international matches due to the persistent electricity issue. He emphasized that for significant matches, generators are used as an alternative arrangement.
Khushi Sikarwar
