RSS (KATHMANDU, 26 November 2019) – Four days remain to go for the 13th South Asian Games (SAG) and yet some infrastructures for some important games are not ready.
The biggest sports event of the countries of South Asia is taking place from December 1 to 10. Eight out of the 27 games under the 13th SAG are being held in Pokhara. The pitches for women football, cricket and beach volleyball that are being held in Pokhara city are not completed as yet.
Beach volleyball matches will be held at Barahighat on the bank of the Phewa Lake and works are underway to construct the infrastructures for the game. Although the players changing room and toilets have been constructed, the works of filling sand on the ground and leveling it remain.
Temporary parapet has also not been installed yet. One beach volleyball court has been upgraded and three more new ones constructed for the event. The National Sports Council has given the responsibility of constructing the sports facilities to the related sports association itself.
Although the related sports associations have forwarded the construction of sports infrastructures through the consumer committees as it would take more time to do so by calling for tenders, it has still taken time for the construction of the sports facilities.
District Volleyball Association president Bhim Parajuli said all the structures required for the games would be ready within three days. He said they have been working continuously since October 18 for this purpose and have completed the upgrading works for the beach volleyball court so far.
Similarly, the works of planting grass and constructing the parapet on the football pitch at the Pokhara Stadium are going ahead expeditiously to make the ground ready for the women football championship under the 13th SAG. According to him, 5,000 seats have been installed on the parapet to the west of the pitch and works are on to install an equal number of seats in the parapet towards the east side of the pitch.
Likewise, works are on for the construction of temporary parapet around the cricket pitch at the Stadium here. The women cricket matches are being held here under the 13th SAG. Changing room is also in the process of construction. Western Region Sports Development Committee’s office chief Laxman Nath Yogi however claimed that the sports infrastructures would be ready couple of days before the 13th SAG kicks off. According to him, works on construction of the remaining infrastructures is almost at the completion phase and they would be readied well in time. He said the 13th SAG would be organized in a grand manner.