GCDA, KCA blame each other

KOCHI: The accident that left six persons injured after the Celebrity Cricket League match at Jawaharlal Nehru International Stadium in Kaloor raises serious concerns about the safety and maintenance of the stadium. When City Express took up the issue with Greater Cochin Development Authority (GCDA) and Kerala Cricket Association (KCA), they both blamed each other for the nightmare that unfolded on Sunday.According to the GCDA officials, the stadium has been leased out to KCA. “The stadium has been given to KCA for five years and they have to carry out the renovation work. They have renovated the ground but other facilities like the hand railing, too have to be looked at by KCA. We only approve the proposal for the work that is to be done by KCA. Fortunately sharp edged iron thrones fixed in the railing were removed before Indian Premier League matches. Otherwise the accident could have been fatal,” a higher official of GCDA said. However, KCA dismissed that such incident occurred due to lack of maintenance. “The KCA has done several renovation work after the stadium was leased to us. It is Kerala Statistical Association (KSA) who raised the standard of the ground to international level. More than `6-crore has been spent to renovate the ground and the infrastructure of the stadium. It is baseless to say that KCA is not conducting any renovation work here. We conduct international matches only after getting approval from the civil engineering department. We spend lot of money before each match for the basic renovation,” a KCA official said.Another KCA official said that the stadium was an open one and the roof was constructed only last year. “The stadium was commissioned in 1995 and it was open to rain and sun. This had led to the rusting of the iron bars. The roof was constructed only last year. It is not our responsibility to do civil work of the stadium. According to the agreement with GCDA, we have to paint the stadium once in every five years. We have done additional work to make it one of the best stadiums in the country,” a KCA official said. Edavala Babu, manager of the Kerala Strikers team, said that the cine actors also had a lucky escape as the whole railing tumbled over them. “It was a lucky escape as the whole railing of the block would have fallen over us. We have taken insurance and the injured people will be given compensation. We have enquired this with the insurance company and they will take sufficient measure. People are responsible for the accident as they crowed near the hand railing to watch the cine stars,” Edavala Babu commented.