Is the Berhampur stadium jinxed?

BERHAMPUR: The Barracks stadium at Berhampur is cursed, it seems. Even after more than two decades, the stadium is yet to be completed. It is embroiled in a tussle between the Central Defence Ministry and the State Government. In the past efforts have been made for the transfer of this piece of land to the Sports Department of the State. But no positive results have come out except some high-level discussion. The Defence Ministry still owns a large chunk of land that had been marked out by the planners for the stadium. A stadium-cum-sport complex was to be constructed on 17.68 acres of land. But the Defence Ministry still owns 9.183 acres of it. The stadium awaits completion even after the Defence Ministry had promised to transfer its land to the stadium, to facilitate its completion, at a high-level meeting in New Delhi last year. Instead, the Ministry has constructed of a polyclinic for ex-servicemen on a patch of land adjacent to the Berhampur stadium. The impasse continues although new governments were formed at the Centre and in the State. Last year the Union Minister of State for Defence, M.M. Pallam Raju had inspected the area and promised all possible help for the transfer of land for the completion of the stadium. Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik had also taken up the matter with the Defence Ministry. The State Government had agreed to provide same amount of land to the Defence Ministry on the outskirts of the city. In return, the Ministry was to be compensated with land near Ambapua or Army Air Defence College at Golabandha. It was also decided that the land transfer work should be completed in a month. Nearly 20 months have lapsed but nothing has happened on this front and with the work on ECH polyclinic underway people are only apprehensive over the completion of the stadium. The polyclinic building encroaches on the half-constructed tennis court complex taken up by BDA. The remaining four pavilions, a swimming pool complex, tennis court complex and a gymnasium are yet to be constructed.
Sources: Newindpress, The Hindu