Quli Qutub Shah Stadium reeks of official apathy

Hyderabad: The famed Quli Qutub Shah Stadium near Telangana High Court is reeling under abject apathy of the State government. Unhygienic conditions put off visitors to the place.

Only stone throwaway from Government City College building and a few meters from the High Court, this oval shaped sports facility is surrounded with several shops accommodated in the 'mulgies' of the stadium itself.

The moment one steps into building, one sees the walls smeared with tobacco and spit. The less said the better about the conditions in toilets and bathrooms. It hardly looks the place meant to improve talents of sportspersons and host games that attract huge public gatherings.

The facility has been in a negligible state for several years. Though the primar objective of the facility is to find and shape the cognitive skills of the youths through training and competitions, the stadium is by and large used to organise religious or other ceremonies, rues Mohammed Imam Tahseen, a social activist.

Finding the structure in a pathetic state, an RTI plaint was filed by him three years ago which failed to elicit any response from the authorities so far. "An RTI plea was filed on July 31, 2017 seeking details from the then Special Officer Somesh Kumar regarding the budget allocation, besides asking why the structure was left in a negligible state without any renovation," he said.

After three long years, he approached the officials of Quli Qutub Shah Urban Development Authority at Salarjung Museum earlier this month in person to enquire about his plea but got only the standard reply that the matter was pending and would be attended to soon, he added.