Turf at Bunda Ground to be ready by March 7

ISLAMABAD: The laying of the fresh artificial turf here at Bunda Hockey Ground will be completed by the first week of March so the venue will be ready for the game’s activities as well as for organising national training camps.

The artificial turf finally arrived at the ground last week, resultantly the work has been restarted in this regard.

“The new turf will be installed at the ground within six weeks. The site will be ready for the hockey activities in less than two-month time,” a Pakistan Sports Board (PSB) official said.

Rs98 million projects to prepare the base came to a halt as the turf got stuck up in Holland due to Covid-19 pandemic.

The new turf will be of utmost importance as it will provide an opportunity to the national players to train amid the friendliest of surroundings, especially for the European tours.

With boarding and lodging facilities, the site has been catering to the needs of national players for almost thirty years now. The training at the ground played an instrumental role in preparing the world champions in 1994.

The Pakistan Hockey Federation (PHF) has also written a letter to the PSB stressing the need for early completion of the project as the federation has a plan for organising national training camp at the venue. Now it seems that things are settling down gradually and the site will be ready in March.

‘The News’ has learnt that the PHF is planning to organise an exhibition match at the site on March 23.

“We have directed the contractor to complete the installation of turf by first week of March, enabling us to organise the match in coordination with the PHF,” a PSB official said.

Minister for Inter-Provincial Coordination Dr Fehmida Mirza also visited the site Wednesday to oversee the upgradation work. Fehmida also directed the concerned to complete the up-gradation work at the earliest.

“Installation of the new turf should be finalised by the first week of March as I have a plan to visit the site again,” she added.

The installation of the turf at the ground has already been delayed unnecessarily. The ideal venue for the PHF to organise national camps was supposed to be ready for inauguration in June 2020. However, the Covid-19 pandemic delayed the import of the turf.

Fehmida also visited the Roshan Khan Squash Complex and Rodham Hall. She also met with a group of athletes from Chitral at the Allama Iqbal Hostel.

“Women should also come forward and play their role in sports promotion. It is really encouraging to see Chitrali women athletes in Islamabad,” she said.